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In 1926 scientists working mainly for western agricultural experiment stations organized an association for the purpose of studying oil spray insecticides. The group's objective was to discover new and better ways of protecting fruit crops from disease and insects without exposing humans to hazardous chemicals such as lead-arsenic compounds, DDT and Parathion. Initially, government and business expressed only a cursory interest in the oil spray project. As the quality of the research teams' work became apparent, interest in organizing a public/private cooperative intensified.

In 1935, agricultural experiment station scientists from Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana, representatives from the agro-chemical industry, and officials from the American and Canadian agriculture departments formed the Western Cooperative Spray Project. The organization's objectives included: the rapid advancement of knowledge concerning the control of fruit insects and fruit diseases; the promotion of consistent test results from region-to-region through the use of a successful standardized system of experimentation; the broadening of knowledge among those engaged in the fruit industry through annual reports of findings, and the establishment of mutual confidence.

As a part of its research work, each cooperating unit included a spray project, provided it with sufficient operational funds, and assigned a chemist, an entomologist, and a plant physiologist or plant pathologist to the project. The cooperative decided on which materials, methods, insects, and plant diseases should be utilized and studied. At the beginning of each year, the project members gathered for a conference at which papers were read, findings were discussed, and proposals for future research made.

The project's members conducted many experiments on a variety of crop-damaging insects and diseases. The project also explored the effects of some insecticides and fungicides on humans.

By 1946, the project's scope was expanded. New member states were added, as were additional representatives from government and business. Research topics became more complex, and the papers presented at the conferences won wide acclaim. The Western Cooperative Spray Conference continued to operate through the early 1950s.