A matter of degree, maybe. Certainly there's a degree of understanding that's cheaper than just blind heavy spraying, and that any grower would thus be foolish not to obtain. I've often seen "IPM" used to refer to systems that went beyond that though, incurring higher cost for lower ecological impact. For example, the guidelines linked below note explicitly that
> Practices contained in this protocol are considerably more expensive than conventional programs that rely on highly toxic pesticides.
I think my supermarket apples were just plain "IPM" though, not a specific set of guidelines like that. Those guidelines seem like a tough sell overall, hard to succinctly explain the benefits to the average consumer.
> Practices contained in this protocol are considerably more expensive than conventional programs that rely on highly toxic pesticides.
https://ipminstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Red-Toma...
https://ipminstitute.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Red-Toma...
I think my supermarket apples were just plain "IPM" though, not a specific set of guidelines like that. Those guidelines seem like a tough sell overall, hard to succinctly explain the benefits to the average consumer.