Home Improvement Giants in the UK to Pull Out Bee-Harming Products

Online, February 6, 2013 (Newswire.com) - Two of the UK's major home improvement companies, B&Q and Wickes, pledged to stop the sale of gardening products that contain nicotine-based insecticide after researchers linked it to the dramatic decline of bee population.

The announcement came with B&Q promising to pull out one of their products containing imidacloprid, while Wickes will be removing any consumer pesticide products that contain thiamethoxam.

These two compounds along with a third, neonicotinoid, have been linked to the struggling population of the world's most prolific pollinators, bees.

EFSA, Europe's leading food safety authority, sounded the "death knell" for the insect nerve agent after officially labelling it as an "unacceptable" danger to bees that feed on flowering crops.

Neocotinoid, also called clothianidin, is a widely used insecticide that is among the primary products manufactured by the agrochemical subgroup of a German aspirin giant, Bayer CropScience.

Julian Little, Bayer's spokesperson, stated, "We do not believe the new EFSA reports alter the quality and validity of [existing] risk assessments and the underlying studies. [But] the company is ready to work with the European commission and member states to address the perceived data gaps. We believe it is very important that any political decision relating to registrations of neonicotinoid-containing products should be based on clear scientific evidence of adverse effects ... and not on the basis of an over-interpretation of the precautionary principle."

Although no clear scientific evidence has been presented to fully ban the pesticides, they still pose a real threat to the bee population and the farming operations across Europe and North America. Some research have also been made that linked these insecticides to a number of environmental stressors, the spread of the parasitic varroa mite, and poor nutrition. In addition, some name one of them as the culprit behind CCD.

The new evidence of harm to bees due to the use of these widely used insecticides is being examined by the UK government's advisory committee with a possibility of recommending changes to the current regulations over their use.

A spokesperson from B&Q announced earlier, "We have been watching the debate that is developing about the use of pesticides, in particular neonicotinoids, and their potential effect on the UK bee population. Whilst we believe that the vast majority of pesticides are not injurious to bees when used in accordance with the instructions, we have some concerns about the potential for harm to be caused by the unintentional misuse of products containing imidacloprid. In recent years, this active ingredient has been phased out of many retail products, and we currently sell only one garden insecticide that uses this active. As a result of our assessment, we have decided to withdraw it from sale and are investigating alternative treatments to meet customer needs."