Pesticide Information

Thank you 700 times, and pesticide Tweets…

Posted by Gavin on March 02, 2010 in Global issues

If you didn’t know it already, we use Twitter, and we now have more than 700 followers - for this we would like to say a big thank you to all.

If you don’t use Twitter, you might not be aware of how useful it can be as a resource for information and good ideas. Here’s a collection of pesticide information from tweets from us, and tweets we’ve re-tweeted from the past few days. Enjoy!

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Via @cropprotection

News of the EU’s ‘REAL Fake’ competition to raise awareness of the dangers and problems associated with counterfeit and fake products - recognised as a great opportunity for EU agricultural schools to explore counterfeit pesticide issues.

Read more: http://bit.ly/an1svn

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Via @pdjmoo

Germany: New sensing technology from bats and insects helps farmers reduce fertilizer and pesticide use - impressive.

Read more: http://ow.ly/1bQ0D

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Via @ThePhoenixSun

An article exploring the health implications of pesticide drift, and the problems of regulating drift.

Read more: http://bit.ly/9xFbmx

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Via @pesticideinfo

Food organisations form working groups to tackle impact of pesticides legislation - a response to the UK consultation for the Sustainable Use Directive.

Read more: http://bit.ly/9F4Zqk

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Via @pesticideinfo

Food Scare Over Toxic Cowpeas Spreads in China - reporting on the detection of harmful chemical residues on Chinese produce.

Read more: http://bit.ly/cZUcmO

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Via @TheAngryindian & @GMWatch

Is WWF the only international green group to be picketed by its peers? An article describing critism of WWF for their involvement in spy production in Latin America.

Read more: http://bit.ly/c2wXPF

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Via @cropprotection

Pesticide red tape may prove ‘a blight on potato sector’. UK concern over the potential impact of new pesticide legislation on potato yeilds.

http://bit.ly/ci5RuK

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Via @pesticideinfo

Colony Collapse Disorder: the real crisis ahead, ‘agricultural collapse disorder…’. A view that bee Colony Collapse Disorder is infact casued by the nature of bee farming.

Read more: http://bit.ly/bzGcJg

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Via @canadaguy

Children in Latin American countries found exposed to DDT - a legacy of anit-malaria pesticide use.

Read more: http://www.enn.com/health/article/41028

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Via @pesticideinfo

Tomatoes that taste like Holland, farming with scorpions, & at least one goodreason why you should not taste pesticides. Actually the previous post on this blog - when you’re done here, why not have a read.

Read more: http://bit.ly/aDuR1Y

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Via @HealthandEnv

NGO facing legal challenge after apparently discovering unacceptable pesticide levels in wine.

http://bit.ly/dcUiVS

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Via @scgardeningnews

Cultural controls are best, but if you must spray, use less toxic insecticides. Some basic advice on home and garden pesticide use.

Read more: http://bit.ly/LpNYO

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Some of our followers…

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Why tomatoes taste of Holland again, and other useful info…

Posted by Gavin on February 16, 2010 in Farming, Food & health, Global issues

Actually they don’t, and probably never did. This wonderful question is the result of a German to English Google translation of an article posted at presseportal.de. The story is of Dutch tomato growers who claim their tomatoes taste more like tomatoes when they are grown with biological methods - favouring natural predators to combat pests, over the use of pesticides. The original article can be read here, and the Google translation can be braved here.

Staying with ‘biological’ pest management, an Israeli researcher is developing what is described as an ‘ecologically sound pesticide’ by modifying the venom of scorpions. It is claimed that certain neurotoxins present in the venom have the chemical properties to manage crop damaging pests, while posing no threats to useful pests such as bees, or mammals like you and I.

Pesticides are like medicines, they are used to treat ’sick’ plants, and prevent ’sickness’ in plants. As with medicines, you should always read the label. A well timed news story ‘Pesticides cause impotency if not properly handled‘ (posted on St. Valentines Day), reports on the potential dangers of failing to follow safety instructions. It seems that some farmers in Ghana have taken to tasting pesticides before use in order to reassure themselves of its potency! Without doubt, a practice entirely incompatible with the safe and sustainable use of pesticides. The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and CropLife Africa Middle East made these revelations during a recent programme of workshops to train farmers and encourage the safe use of plant protection products.

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) offers a wealth of information on good agricultural practices, including information on the sustainable and safe use of pesticides. Always read the label, and if in doubt, seek expert advice.

scorp

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More on Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) from around the web

Posted by Gavin on November 18, 2009 in Environment, Farming, Food & health, Global issues

Another round-up of online press and research covering the debate on Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), the name given to an apparent global decline in the pollinating bee population. Comments and link contributions are welcomed - look for the ‘Comments’ link at the base of this post.

Press

Trying to Diagnose the Disappearing Bees (Voice of Sandiego.org)
10 Possible Causes of Colony Collapse Disorder (About.com)
Scientists Untangle Multiple Causes of Bee Colony Disorder (Environment News Service)
Habitat loss and disease are bees’ bane, not pesticides (Farmers Weekly Interactive)
Pesticides blamed for killing bees (Telegraph.co.uk)
Global Honey Bee Population Increasing, Despite Local Losses (ecoworldly.com)

Mysterious decline in bee population creates worry (WorldFocusOnline via YouTube)

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General reference

Colony collapse disorder (Wikipedia)
Colony collapse disorder - Possible causes and research (Wikipedia)

Research

Colony Collapse Disorder: A Descriptive Study
(van Engelsdorp et al. plosone.org)
Honeybee colony collapse due to Nosema ceranae in professional apiaries
(Higes et al. Environmental Microbiology Reports, via Wiley InterScience)
Distribution and decline of British bumblebees
(Williams / Natural History Museum UK)

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Recent press on pesticides

Posted by Phil on November 06, 2009 in Environment, European Regulation, Farming, Food & health, Global issues

Some articles on pesticides and related topics from the last two weeks. Feel free to recommend more articles by selecting “Recommend a page or site” above or access a more comprehensive list of articles by using the Delicious cloud in the right-hand column.

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Latest summary of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) reports and opinion

Posted by Helen Dunnett on March 11, 2009 in Environment, Farming, Food & health

As promised, here’s a summary of various reports and comments we’ve found online recently discussing the disappearance of honey bees in Europe and America.

BBC have produced a series of video reports recently on honey bees which you’ll find below.

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The bee season returns and experts continue to search the cause of Colony Collapse Disorder

Posted by Helen Dunnett on February 20, 2009 in Environment, Farming, Food & health

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Bees are a fundamental part of sustainable agriculture. Bees and other pollinating insects are responsible for the pollination of more than 80% of crops in Europe. So it’s been extremely worrying to see a mass decline in them over the past years. It’s got to such a critical point that this year the EU has funded a nine-month research project to better understand the problem and investigate the potential cause.

Hubert Deluyker, EFSA’s Director of Scientific Cooperation and Assistance, who is leading the project said: “This project will be an important step forward in international efforts to understand and help tackle the reported decline in bee populations, which could have widespread implications not only in environmental terms but also with regard to the food chain”.

“I strongly encourage scientists and other interested parties – such as beekeeping associations, for example – to share their valuable scientific data, knowledge and experience with the organisers of this project,” he added.
Read the rest of this entry »

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An explanation for the cause of colony collapse disorder?

Posted by Phil on January 02, 2009 in Environment, Global issues

Last month, researchers at the University of Illinois and the U.S. Department of Agriculture released a study that is the first to identify a single cause of the colony collapse disorder that has been killing off bees across the world. Please find below a selection of articles and blog posts on the matter published since then:

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