Herbicides

Cruiser OCR makes up less than 0.5 percent of group sales, and Syngenta would try to offset any loss in revenue through other products

Swiss group Syngenta forecast another year of record sales as high crop prices and erratic weather spur farmers to use more of its pesticides, fertilisers and advanced seeds to boost yields. Net profit rose 17 percent to $1.87 billion to beat the average analyst forecast in a Reuters poll. Sales at Syngenta, which competes with DuPont, and Germany's Bayer, rose 7 percent in 2012 to $14.2 billion, falling just short of the average analyst forecast of $14.3 billion. Syngenta, which sells products to kill weeds and bugs as well as genetically-modified seeds, is targeting sales of its top eight crops of $25 billion by 2020. The Basel-based firm announced a dividend of 9.50 Swiss francs per share, up from 8 francs a year ago. A sharp fall in bee populations around the world in recent years has prompted criticism of pesticide use and last week the European Commission said it wanted EU member states to suspend the use of neonicotinoid insecticides. Mack said the decision was "scientifically misguided", but said it would have no material impact on 2013 sales as any restriction would only come into place after the sunflower, oil seed rape and corn is largely sown. Its pesticide, named Cruiser OCR, makes up less than 0.5 percent of group sales, and Chief Executive Mack said Syngenta would try to offset any loss in revenue through other products.

Henk van Gerven wil in navolging van Denemarken een heffing op bestrijdingsmiddelen om het concurrentienadeel van landbouwers die schoon voedsel produceren te verminderen

SP-Kamerlid Henk van Gerven stelt voor het concurrentienadeel van landbouwers die schoon voedsel produceren te verminderen. Van Gerven: 'Schoon voedsel is belangrijk voor de volksgezondheid en het milieu, maar helaas is er nog teveel voedsel waar bij de productie onnodig veel bestrijdingsmiddelen worden gebruikt. Boeren die minder bestrijdingsmiddelen gebruiken hebben een concurrentienadeel omdat hun manier van bestrijding arbeidsintensiever is of omdat hun zaaigoed nog duurder is. Dat verschil tussen schone en vieze landbouwproductie kan kleiner worden als de schadelijke effecten van bestrijdingsmiddelen belast worden.' Van Gerven noemt als voorbeeld een uienplant die resistent is tegen meeldauw, waardoor er geen bestrijdingsmiddel op gespoten hoeft te worden. Het zaaigoed van de meeldauwresistente ui is echter duurder en daarom gebruiken nog veel boeren het goedkopere gewone uienzaaigoed plus de bijbehorende spotgoedkope bestrijdingsmiddelen. De boer die schoon wil produceren is daarbij in het nadeel terwijl de waterwinbedrijven met oplopende kosten zitten omdat het grondwater onnodig vervuild wordt.

Monsanto's 'Superweeds' Stampede Through Midwest

Last year's drought took a big bite out of the two most prodigious US crops, corn and soy. But it apparently didn't slow down the spread of weeds that have developed resistance to Monsanto's herbicide Roundup (glyphosate), used on crops engineered by Monsanto to resist it. More than 70 percent of all the the corn, soy, and cotton grown in the US is now genetically modified to withstand glyphosate. Back in 2011, such weeds were already spreading fast. "Monsanto's 'Superweeds' Gallop Through Midwest," declared the headline of a post I wrote then. What's the word you use when an already-galloping horse speeds up? Because that's what's happening. Let's try this: "Monsanto's 'Superweeds' Stampede Through Midwest."

Das Hauptargument für den Einsatz gentechnisch veränderter Pflanzen ist widerlegt. In den USA werden mehr Pestizide eingesetzt als je zuvor

In den USA werden mehr Pestizide eingesetzt als je zuvor. Das zeigen die Zahlen der US-Umweltbehörde EPA. Und das, obwohl immer mehr gentechnisch veränderte Pflanzen angebaut werden, die den Einsatz von Pestiziden verringern sollten. Zu diesem Ergebnis kommt der Gentechnikexperte Christoph Then in einer Studie, die er im Auftrag des grünen Europaabgeordneten Martin Häusling erstellt hat. Then widerlegt damit das Hauptargument für den Einsatz gentechnisch veränderter Pflanzen.

Monsanto heeft zich neergelegd bij het oordeel van de Nederlandse Reclame Code Commissie over een misleidende Roundup advertentie

Het bedrijf heeft geen beroep ingesteld tegen de uitspraak van de commissie van 11 december 2012. Deze reclame is misleidend in de stellingen dat het middel "geen bodemwerking zou kennen", "niet zou achterblijven in de grond" en "niet zou doordringen tot het grondwater", aldus de Reclame Code Commissie. De advertentie 'Roundup, de feiten' verscheen in juni 2012 in de Telegraaf en De Vokskrant. De klacht tegen de reclame was ingediend door gifsoja.nl samen met Corporate Europe Observatory en Pesticide Action Network. De klacht werd onderbouwd met verwijzingen naar een serie wetenschappelijke onderzoeken uit verschillende landen. Tjerk Dalhuisen, een van de indieners zegt "De advertentie probeerde de indruk te wekken dat Roundup onschadelijk is. Er stonden grove feitelijke onwaarheden in. Roundup is schadelijk voor het bodemleven en vormt een groot probleem voor de drinkwatervoorziening. Roundup richt overal in de wereld grote schade aan bij mens, dier en natuur."

It's not the pesticides alone or introduced predators or ultraviolet light or global warming that's causing this decline, but the interaction between these on an animal that is pretty sensitive to its environment

The pesticide brew in many ponds bordering Midwestern cornfields is not only affecting the sexual development of frogs, but is making them more prone to deadly bacterial meningitis, according to a new study by University of California, Berkeley, scientists. These physiological effects combine with environmental disruptions to make the life of a frog seem like something out of a horror movie and are likely among the factors causing a decline in amphibian populations worldwide, the researchers said. "If you look at one of these frogs, it's probably a hermaphrodite - plus, it metamorphoses late, which means it is subject to its pool drying up before it can become a frog," said lead researcher Tyrone Hayes, professor of integrative biology at UC Berkeley. "It's also smaller, if it metamorphoses at all, which increases the likelihood it will be eaten and decreases its ability to eat. Plus, it's immuno-suppressed, so more prone to die from infection." The stress on the frogs is increasing stress hormone levels, he found, which in turn create holes in the thymus gland that likely cause the impaired immune response. "It's not the pesticides alone or introduced predators or ultraviolet light or global warming that's causing this decline, but the interaction between these on an animal that is pretty sensitive to its environment," said Hayes.

Roundup ad misleading: Monsanto forced to accept verdict

Monsanto has been forced to accept the opinion of the Advertising Code Committee in the Netherlands over a misleading advertisement on their agrochemical Roundup. The company did not appeal against the decision of the committee of 11 December 2012. The ad titled "Roundup, the facts" appeared in June 2012 in the Telegraph and The Volkskrant. This advertising is misleading in the propositions that the herbicide "would have no effect on the soil", "would not remain in the soil" and "would not penetrate the soil," the Advertising Code Committee said. The complaint was filed against by campaign website toxicsoy.org together with Corporate Europe Observatory and Pesticide Action Network. The complaint was substantiated with references to scientific studies from different countries. Tjerk Dalhuisen, one of the authors, says, "The ad was trying to give the impression that Roundup is harmless. It contained gross factual inaccuracies. Roundup is harmful to the soil and is a major problem for the drinking water supply. Roundup causes considerable damage to humans, animals and nature."

Earth Open Source: The pesticide industry and Europe’s regulators have jointly misled the public with claims that glyphosate is safe

The pesticide industry and EU regulators knew as long ago as the 1980s-1990s that Roundup, the world's best selling herbicide, causes birth defects – but they failed to inform the public.
This report, co-authored by international scientists and researchers, reveals that industry’s own studies (including one commissioned by Monsanto) showed as long ago as the 1980s that Roundup’s active ingredient glyphosate causes birth defects in laboratory animals.
The facts are these:
• Industry has known from its own studies since the 1980s that glyphosate causes malformations in experimental animals at high doses
• Industry has known since 1993 that these effects also occur at lower and mid doses
• The German government has known since at least 1998 that glyphosate causes malformations
• The EU Commission’s expert scientific review panel knew in 1999 that glyphosate causes malformations
• The EU Commission has known since 2002 that glyphosate causes malformations. This was the year it signed off on the current approval of glyphosate.

But this information was not made public. On the contrary, the pesticide industry and Europe’s regulators have jointly misled the public with claims that glyphosate is safe. As a result, Roundup is used by home gardeners and local authorities on roadsides, in school grounds, and in other public areas, as well as in farmers’ fields.

Dutch Parliament moves against glyphosate

In September 2011 a Green Member of the Dutch Parliament, Rik Grashoff, put forward a Parliamentary motion proposing a ban on the "commercial use" of Roundup outside agriculture. In the motion, Grashoff cited evidence presented in Earth Open Source's report, "Roundup and birth defects: Is the public being kept in the dark?". This report revealed that industry's own studies carried out as long ago as the 1980s showed that glyphosate, Roundup's active ingredient, causes birth defects in laboratory animals. These findings, and evidence of other types of harm, have been confirmed in independent peer-reviewed studies, also mentioned by Grashoff in the motion. Grashoff added that Roundup is a threat to drinking water supplies and that alternative methods of weed control are available. Grashoff's motion gained majority support in the Parliament, so now the relevant minister has to work out a proposal. There has been talk of stopping the use of the herbicide on streets, in parks, and other public places. Our sources in The Netherlands tell us that Monsanto asked for a meeting with the minister. In due course, a "Sustainable Weed Control Support Group" was founded by "users and producers of herbicides", including a website, facebook and twitter sites. These sites promote the notion of the "sustainable use" of Roundup and claim declining levels of pollution in surface water in recent years. On 25 June 2012 Monsanto placed a large advertisement in De Telegraaf, the biggest newspaper in The Netherlands, claiming that EOS's report was wrong. Monsanto's counter-argument was that the studies highlighted in EOS's report – all of them, presumably! – had been evaluated by CTGB (the Dutch regulatory authority) and other EU authorities and were deemed not "relevant".

Im Vergleich zur Situation in der Mitte des vorigen Jahrhunderts sind manche Gebiete heute nahezu spatzenfrei

Dass gerade der Haussperling – ein gewöhnlicher Spatz – zum Vogel des Jahres 2002 gekürt wurde, erscheint auf den ersten Blick grotesk. Vieles jedoch spricht dafür, auf diese interessante Vogelart aufmerksam zu machen. Haussperlinge (Passer domesticus) gehören zur Familie der Webervögel (Ploceidae). Die Gattung der Sperlinge (Passeridae) umfasst davon weltweit 36 Arten. In Brandenburg kommt neben dem Haussperling nur noch der etwas weniger bekannte Feldsperling (Passer montanus) vor. Zweimal konnten sogar Mischlinge beider Arten nachgewiesen werden. Der Spatz ist hierzulande vielleicht die bekannteste Vogelart. Bis Mitte des vergangenen Jahrhunderts wurden Haussperlinge als Schädlinge stark verfolgt. Ihre Vorliebe für Getreidekörner wurde den Vögeln zum Verhängnis. Heute spielen die Verluste durch Vogelfraß kaum noch eine Rolle, denn die Sperlingsbestände sind in ganz Mitteleuropa deutlich rückläufig. Dafür gibt es mehrere Ursachen. In den Großstädten gibt es immer weniger unbebaute Grünflächen. Mit zunehmender Versiegelung der Flächen sank die Verfügbarkeit der Nestlingsnahrung, so dass immer weniger Sperlinge flügge wurden. Im Osten Deutschlands wirkte sich sogar die politische Wende seit Anfang der 90er Jahre auf die Entwicklung des Haussperlingsbestandes aus. Bereits 1991 begannen die Bestände lokal zu sinken. Auslöser war der Wegfall des Futterdeputats in der dörflichen Kleintierhaltung. So wurde vielerorts die individuelle Kleintierhaltung aufgegeben und somit war die ganzjährige Verfügbarkeit von Körnernahrung nicht mehr gegeben. Insgesamt sank der Sperlingsbestand in Brandenburg bis Ende der 90er Jahre auf etwa 50, teilweise sogar auf 30 Prozent und scheint nun auf diesem Niveau zu stagnieren.