Nanopesticide: Future Application of Nanomaterials in Plant Protection

Crop and postharvest pests and diseases have significant impact on agricultural yield loss and farmers’ incomes. Farmers mostly use synthetic pesticides to manage pests to maximize crop yields, posing potential risks for workers, consumers, and the environments. Metal- and agrochemical-based nanopesticides were potentially less toxic alternative pesticides to conventional pesticides in plant protection, while essential oils and bioactive agent-based nanopesticides and/or control released formulation have potential for use in organic food production and sustainable agriculture. Nanoparticles and/or nanoemulsions including nanomatrices of delivery agents of metals, agrochemicals, essential oils, and bioactive agents in nanopesticide formulations have been synthesized and evaluated for their effectivity against pests and disease pathogens. Some researches of nanomaterials application in developing nanopesticides were reviewed, and their promising nanoformulation methods were highlighted to be considered for their sustainable innovation in the future development of effective, efficient, and safe nanopesticides.