The rapeseed producers rejecting bee-harming pesticides
Friends of the Earth have launched a consumer campaign to support several British rapeseed oil producers that have pledged to reject bee-harming pesticides even if the current EU ban on their use ends.
The initiative follows a scientific study published last year which found some bee species that fed on oilseed rape crops treated with the three restricted pesticides declined by as much as 30%.
British rapeseed oil producers Bath Harvest Oils, Duchess Oil, Pure Kent, Farrington’s Mellow Yellow, R-Oil, and Yare Valley Oils, have all agreed to stop using the harmful pesticides and help save the honeybee.
To support the initiative, Friends of the Earth have launched a ‘Bee-friendly shoppers guide to rapeseed oil’, a free and easy to download guide filled with information on the farms taking part as well as facts and recipe suggestions.
Sam Fairs, who runs Hillfarm in Suffolk, said: “Bees are vitally important to us and we take great care not to harm them in any way. We do not use neonicotinoid seed treatments and have seen no effects on our crops. We have vouched never to use them at Hill Farm.”
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