Press statement: European Commission bee proposal
01 February 2013
Following news of proposals to restrict the use of neonicotinoids from the European Commissioner for health and consumer policy, Peter Melchett, policy director at the Soil Association said;
“We welcome the proposals from the European Commissioner for health and consumer policy who has said that “swift and decisive” action is needed to restrict the use of certain neonicitonoid pesticides. The European Commission has taken account of the latest scientific evidence and we urge the UK government to do the same. Until now the UK has been one of only four EU member states that has been resisting a ban on neonicitonoid use. In the light of calls for a ban from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Commission, we urge the UK government to act now to protect the bees.
Sadly, any European ban will come too late to stop neonicotinoids being used this spring but consumers can take action now. Neonicotinoids can be found in various widely available garden pest control products aimed at insects like aphid, whitefly, vine weevil, thrips and butterflies. Consumers must stop using these harmful pesticides and look at alternative gardening methods or choosing bee friendly biological replacements such as nematodes for vine weevil or BT (bacillus thuringiensis) for cabbage whites.
Concerned consumers should look out for products such as Provado Ultimate Bug Killer, Bug Attack, BugClear and Roseclear and other products containing imidacloprid, clothianidin , thiamethoxam, acetamiprid and thiacloprid. Some retailers have taken steps to remove some products containing neonicotinoids but there are still many products widely available. We continue to call for all retailers to remove all products containing neonicotinoids.”
Notes
- The four EU Member states – UK, Spain, Denmark and Hungary
