Economic feasibility of a small-scale production plant for entomopathogenic fungi in Nicaragua

Natural insecticides based on the entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana and Metarhizium anisopliae have been produced on an experimental scale in Nicaragua with a 6-month output for insect control on 1100 ha. Main target insects are the coffee berry borer Hypothenemus hampei, the diamond-backed moth Plutella xylostella, and spittlebugs (Aeneolamia spp. and Prosapia spp.) in sugarcane. The production process involves three life cycles of the fungus, first on solid culture medium, then on rice in Erlenmeyer flasks from which a liquid inoculum is obtained and finally on rice in polypropylene bags. The economic feasibility of scaling up the conidia production for an annual output to cover mycopesticide applications on 20,000 ha is calculated. Total investment for a complete new construction of facilities amounts to US$264,000. The estimated shelf prices of the products range from US$8.00 to US$12.00/ha. A net profit is obtained as soon as the output reaches 75% of full capacity, which is targeted for the third year. In the final year of the planning horizon of 10 years, at which time the debt has been serviced, the break-even ratio is reached at 56% of nominal capacity. The internal rate of return on the total investment is 12.7%. The production is economically sustainable if initial capital is provided below market interest rates via a research or development co-operation treaty. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.