Integrated Pest Management is the crop protection system which best meets the requirements of sustainable development and sustainable agriculture. IPM is a component of Integrated Crop Management ICM has been developed as a farming system to meet the requirements of long-term sustainability.

IPM implementation is most advanced in Western Europe and North America, and is expanding in developing countries in Southeast Asia, Latin America, Indian subcontinent and Africa. The challenge will be to do this without harming the environment and the resource base for future generations of farmers and consumers. IPM is an important principle in which sustainable crop protection can be based.

To build an IPM programme three components should be taken in to account: Prevention, Observation and Intervention.

1. Prevention. Before start thinking in Pest and what method of control to use, it is suggested to review your production system; many aspects of farm and crop management limit of prevent the initial build-up of pest infestations. Examples: Crop rotation, seedlings, transplanting, plant breeding, fertilisation, irrigation.
2. Observation. This component try to answer these questions, What pest is your problem ? Who are your beneficial aliens? The problem is in all the field? And What is your economical damage and your cost to control ?; in order to answer these questions you have to develop the use of decisions tools like, pest and beneficial insects identification, use of crop monitoring, and use of thresholds.
3. Intervention. Once you know what pest is causing your problem, and in what level, you can make a decision of what type of control measure you will use: Cultural, physical, biological, or chemical control. But remember the AIM is reduce the effects of economically damaging pest populations to acceptable levels, working in protecting the environment and the population dynamics.

This model has been implemented in our Tobacco company and the results has been a success, with yield increasing, savings in cost of production, and the most important in our business reducing the amount of Active Ingredient used in tobacco from 15 to 3.5 Kgs/ha, using biological insects as the most important measure of control.Note: This presentation was the basic topic of the 1st International Pest Management Seminar that was held in Venezuela for all the BAT Operating Companies around the world.