Pyrethrum, Pyrethrin, Pyrethroid, Permethrin… what’s the difference???

I struggled with this when I first got started so here is a quick recap to try and explain the difference and a summary of why we believe you should choose Pyrethrum first.

Pyrethrum – This is what we grow. Its a natural oil sourced from flowers. Pyrethrum is the common name for the plant but it is also the collective name used to describe the 6 individual active pyrethrin molecules.

Pyrethrins – These are the individual molecules found within the pyrethrum flower that are considered the “active ingredient”. Their short names are C1, C2, J1,J2, P1 and P2. 
These 6 natural pyrethrin esters result from the combination of chrysanthemic acid or pyrethric acid with one of the following 3 alcohols: Pyrethrolone, Cinerolone or Jasmolone. Hence their abbreviated names.

In summary, the Pyrethrins are the active ingredients within the Pyrethrum flower. Manufacturers could reference either. They are interchangable in most cases. All you need to remember is that this is the NATURAL solution.

The reson why pyrethins are so great is that they do their job and then rapidly break down and do not persist in the environment. The typical withholding period for pyrethrum based sprays is 24 hours. This means that 24 hours after application the residual spray is undetectable.

Pyrethroids – are SYNTHETIC chemicals manufactured to use the same attack vectors as pyrethrum. In particular pyrethroids have been strengthened to persist in the environment.

There are many different pyrethroids out there – the most common one is permethrin.

Permethrin – is a pyrethroid. It has a half life of 39.5 days. This means that when you spray permethrin onto food crops or into the environment it takes 39.5 days to reduce by half. To fully decompose it takes 79 days.

Conclusion : 
As a culture we over use pesticides. We protect our crops, our homes, and our work places by spraying even when spraying isn’t necessary. We call this preventative maintenance to justify it but if this activity is done with sprays that persist in the environment it creates a perpetually toxic world and gives the insects a chance to evolve resistance. It is common sense to use a product such as pyrethrum that does the job and then breaks down. Work with mother nature, not against her.

Recent press articles :

• Pesticides persisting in the environment for so long that they are leeching into ground water. Pesticides polluting streams across Europe
• All insects in the environment are exposed to the persistent chemicals. This causes Plummeting insect numbers threaten collapse of nature
• The crops we eat retain these chemicals and they become a part of us. 
  Pesticide residue found in 70% of produce sold in US even after washing
  Pesticide residues found on 93% of organic Swiss farms
• Insects are evolving to live in an environment saturated with pesticides. This makes treating the next generation of insects harder and harder as they evolve in response. Insects evolve resistance to insecticides. In the fight against malaria this is critical. After 40 years the most important weapon against mosquitoes may be failing