Today's news - 07 February 2013

 "The real danger is that the UK Government will simply ignore this overwhelming scientific evidence of the damage these chemicals are doing to honeybees. The EFSA has confirmed that despite having really clear scientific evidence against three of these chemicals in oilseed rape and maize and so on, it is open to the Government simply to ignore the science."
Peter Melchett, Policy Director of the Soil Association
The Independent (6 Feb)

Government to ignore European ban on neonicotinoid pesticides
The British Government is completely free to ignore recommendations from European safety regulators that controversial nerve-agent pesticides should not be used on crops visited by bees, MPs were told. With a quote from Peter Melchett, policy director of the Soil Association.
The Independent (6 Feb)
Help Save the Bees by writing to your MP here
Find out more about the campaign to Keep Britain Buzzing

US farmers may stop planting GMs after poor global yields
Some US farmers are considering returning to conventional seed after increased pest resistance and crop failures meant GM crops saw smaller yields globally than their non-GM counterparts.
Farmers Weekly (6 Feb)
The Soil Association’s position on GM

FAO calls for governmental support for Agroforestry
A UN organisation has said that millions of people could escape poverty, hunger and environmental degradation if countries put more effort into promoting agroforestry, an integrated approach combining trees with crop or livestock production.
Farming.co.uk (5 Feb)

MEPs vote to end 'discarding' of surplus fish catches
MEPs have voted to support radical reform to the European Union's discredited common fisheries policy by ending the dumping of surplus fish in the sea and returning control over fishing to regions.
The Telegraph (6 Feb)

At last, the truth: Butter is good for you - and margarine is chemical gunk
We have been conned into believing margarine was better for us than butter. The scientific evidence is totally at odds with decades of official advice. The profit-grabbing manufacturers have never been prepared to admit
Daily Mail (7 Feb)

Conservation group the WWF has announced plans to deploy surveillance drones to protect wildlife
The green group says that by the end of the year, it will have deployed "eyes in the sky" in one country in Africa or Asia, with a second country following in 2014 as part of a $5m hi-tech push to combat the illegal wildlife trade.
The Guardian (7 Feb)

Free film on GMO education
On February 5, the Institute for Responsible Technology (IRT) extended a free on-line screening to the public of the award-winning, independent feature-length film, “Genetic Roulette – The Gamble of Our Lives.“
The Examiner (5 Feb)

Can local currencies help advance global sustainability?
Care to buy a loaf of bread? If you are in Baltimore, Bristol, Calgary, or many other cities worldwide, you might just be able to pay for it using a very local currency. In Bristol, businesses can even pay taxes using local currency – the Bristol Pound – and their mayor is taking his entire salary in the new currency. New systems, like Bay Bucks in San Francisco, are popping up with increasing regularity.
The Guardian (5 Feb)

Indian investors are forcing Ethiopians off their land
Ethiopia's leasing of 600,000 hectares (1.5 acres) of prime farmland to Indian companies has led to intimidation, repression, detentions, rapes, beatings, environmental destruction, and the imprisonment of journalists and political objectors, according to a new report.
The Guardian (7 Feb)

Rothamsted plans GM winter wheat field trial
Britain could get its first field trial of autumn-sown GM wheat if plans by Rothamsted Research come to fruition.
Farmers Weekly (7 Feb)

RSPCA refused permission for live export legal challenge
The RSPCA has been refused permission for a legal challenge of the live export trade from Ramsgate.
Farmers Guardian (7 Feb

Possible poultry training base near York
A farm on the edge of York has been recommended to become a training base for those in the poultry industry by City of York Council's economic development team.
Farmers Weekly (6 Feb)

Farming Today
Campaigners and the government have welcomed MEPs' decision to change the way European fishing is run. Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall tells Farming Today he welcomes the news, but fishermen warn the proposals may not make fishing more sustainable, or protect their livelihoods.
BBC Radio 4 (7 Feb)

And finally… Just for men: Inventor 'fed up with smelling like a girl' develops soaps fragranced with beer, bacon and even soil! 
Daily Mail (5 Feb)