What Are The Pesticide Usage Statistics From The Last 20 Years?

EPA's report, Pesticides Industry Sales and Usage: 2006 and 2007 Market Estimates, is now available at http://www.epa.gov/opp00001/pestsales/. This report contains the latest estimates of agricultural and nonagricultural pesticide use in the United States. It illustrates graphically historical trends and levels of use over the last 20 years. Also included are data on imports, exports, and pesticide producers and users. The report contains statistics on pesticide sales and usage based on available information taken from Agency records of registrations, USDA surveys of pesticide use, and other public and proprietary sources. Highlights include: 

• In the United States, pesticide sales were approximately $12.5 billion at the user level, which accounted for 32% of the nearly $40 billion world market in 2007.Pesticide use in the United States was 1.1 billion pounds in 2007, or 22% of the world estimate of 5.2 billion pounds of pesticide use.
• Total pounds of U.S. pesticide use decreased by approximately 8% from 1.2 to 1.1 billion pounds from 2000 to 2007.
• Use of conventional pesticides decreased about 3% from 2002 to 2007 and 11% from 1997 to 2007.
• Approximately 857 million pounds of conventional pesticide active ingredient were applied in 2007.
• Organophosphate insecticide use decreased about 44% from 2002 to 2007, 63% from 2000 to 2007, and 55% from 1997 to 2007.
• About 33 million pounds of organophosphate insecticides were applied in 2007.
• Eighty percent of all U.S. pesticide use was in agriculture.
• Herbicides remained the most widely used type of pesticide in the agricultural market sector.

Among the top 10 pesticides used in terms of pounds applied in the agricultural market were the herbicides glyphosate, atrazine, metolachlor-s, acetochlor, 2,4-D, and pendimethalin, and the fumigants metam sodium, dichloropropene, methyl bromide, and chloropicrin. Herbicides were also the most widely used type of pesticide in the home and garden and industrial, commercial, and governmental market sectors, and the herbicides 2,4-D and glyphosate were the most widely used active ingredients. - EPA

Annual Amount of Pesticide Active Ingredient Used in the United States

By Pesticide Type, 1988–1997 Estimates (Millions of Pounds of Active Ingredient)

All Market Sectors

Pesticide Type		1988		1989		1990		1991		1992		1993		1994		1995		1996		1997
Herbicides/PGR		557		567		564		546		554		527		583		556		578		568
Insecticides		132		123		121		114		116		115		124		125		116		112
Fungicides		99		98		91		86		81		80		79		77		79		81
Other Conv. (1)		137		154		173		182		189		192		199		203		222		197
Other (2)		266		251		252		226		246		248		244		249		234		270
Total		1,191		1,193		1,201		1,154		1,186		1,162		1,229		1,210		1,229		1,228

Annual Amount of Pesticide Active Ingredient Used in the United States

By Pesticide Type, 1998–2007 Estimates (Millions of Pounds of Active Ingredient)

All Market Sectors

Pesticide Type		1998		1999		2000		2001		2002		2003		2004		2005		2006		2007
Herbicides/PGR		555		534		542		553		527		527		521		513		498		531
Insecticides		103		126		122		105		130		115		114		104		99		93
Fungicides		86		79		74		73		71		76		75		75		73		70
Other Conv. (1)		168		173		188		157		157		150		175		149		151		163
Other (2)		294		332		308		315		321		335		325		308		306		276
Total		1,206		1,244		1,234		1,203		1,206		1,203		1,210		1,152		1,127		1,133

Annual Amount of Pesticide Active Ingredient Used in the United States

By Pesticide Type, 1988 - 1997 Estimates (Millions of Pounds of Active Ingredient)

Agricultural Market Sector

Pesticide Type		1988		1989		1990		1991		1992		1993		1994		1995		1996		1997
Herbicides/PGR		450		460		455		440		450		425		485		461		481		470
Insecticides		91		85		82		77		78		72		80		85		81		79
Fungicides		54		54		50		47		45		47		48		49		51		53
Other Conv. (1)		95		113		133		144		150		154		163		170		190		165
Other (2)		177		161		164		140		161		166		163		168		152		188
Total		867		873		884		848		884		864		939		933		955		955

Annual Amount of Pesticide Active Ingredient Used in the United States

By Pesticide Type, 1998–2007 Estimates (Millions of Pounds of Active Ingredient)

Agricultural Market Sector

Pesticide Type		1998		1999		2000		2001		2002		2003		2004		2005		2006		2007
Herbicides/PGR		465		428		432		433		417		426		425		421		407		442
Insecticides		69		93		90		73		97		80		82		73		69		65
Fungicides		54		45		44		42		40		43		43		47		46		44
Other Conv. (1)		136		140		156		127		127		120		145		119		121		133
Other (2)		212		250		226		232		238		252		242		225		223		193
Total		936		956		948		907		919		921		937		885		866		877