Engineering an Eco-Friendly World: A Sustainable Pesticide Powered by Biotech

People often have mixed feelings about pesticides, and their harmful effects are becoming more widely acknowledged. Since pesticides contain various chemicals, residues on crops can lead to unintentional ingestion of these substances. Furthermore, pesticide residues can seep into waterways, spreading into larger bodies of water and affecting marine life. The production of pesticides also contributes to increased carbon emissions, which plays a role in global warming. Despite these concerns, pesticides are still heavily used, with millions of pounds being applied each year. This is largely because not using pesticides could lead to even greater problems. The pests they target often damage and infect crops, worsening food insecurity. But what if there was a solution that balanced environmental protection with crop safety? Biotechnology has found such a solution. Double-stranded RNA (dsRNA).

dsRNA is a component of RNA interference (RNAi), which is being looked into for its pest control abilities. To put it simply, dsRNA can target specific pathogens and pests in crops and target their growth genomes to essentially kill them, just like a traditional pesticide would do. The only difference is that this isn't a chemical.

Currently, a startup called Apolo Biotech is leading the realm of RNAi for sustainable applications, being recognized as a Innovate4Impact semi-finalist in 2025 through the World Food Prize Foundation. They are focusing on issues with climate change in agriculture.

However, as with many different engineering solutions, there are limitations. One major limitation of this solution is cost. Pesticides are known for being a cost-effective solution that provides for a farmer's basic needs when it comes to crop protection. However, to produce dsRNA, a well-equipped lab with scientific instruments is the bare minimum. Nevertheless, with enough engineering, any limitation can be thoroughly addressed.

In conclusion, dsRNA and RNAi, despite limitations, can prove to be an effective substitute for pesticides, contributing to a more sustainable world by enhancing human health and addressing climate change. This is how we achieve a more sustainable future: engineering solutions to a variety of problems until all those solutions converge to solve one big problem—climate change.