I was speaking to one of my local farmers last week. He stopped using insecticides on his large mixed farm 6 years ago. He's staggered by the increase in bird life on his farm and says that he has experienced no loss of productivity. He's now passionately engaging with local school and community groups to advocate greater soil health and to bring the debate around food production & biodiversity loss into everyday lives. I applaud him.
"stopped using insecticides" I saw a video a while back with a soil expert going over someone's newly acquired farm. No worms ...!! Apparently this was most likely down to the use of toxins used in worming medication in livestock.
@@aindriubradleymarshall6226 I have looked into it. I'm disturbed by some of Steiner's racist and discriminatory comments though. I won't clog up Dave's comment thread by discussing this further.
The loss of insect life and the consequential loss of higher life in my lifetime has been nothing short of catastrophic. I am 62yrs Old. I am sure that if we carry on for another 62 yrs like this there will be nothing left. This includes us Humans.
Our vet practice is always trying to sign dogs up to monthly (and lucrative) worm and flea treatment. I've been politely called a negligent owner, but I feel after 55 years of owning Jack Russells I can safely give worm tablets. As to the flea treatment, I always point out the environmental damage and refuse to put poison on him if he hasn't got fleas.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Pets are an environmental disaster anyway, mainly because of the production of pet food but also because the dry residue of their waste which ends up in phreatic waters and landfills, unlike ours which goes to treatment plants.
Thank you, Dr. Goulson. The problem is evident, and it's no longer about lacking data. The real issue is twofold: the general population's insufficient knowledge about the subject and the constant pressure from pesticide companies to suppress conversations. I truly appreciate your courage to speak publicly about this issue. Thank you for your hard work and for continuing to educate all of us on this matter. Best regards.
It's great to see you still crusading against neonicotinoids, Dave. What chance do our insects have with everything contaminated, from the root to the shoot to the fruit? Petition signed. Cheers, George NN
I have no idea how you can speak about this in such a measured and matter of fact way. Respect. The more I learn, the more I want to shout this from the rooftops! Feels like we are sleep walking off a cliff :(
you are not alone we are surrounded by idiots not knowing anything and we kill ourselves with this way of agriculture ....i stopped bee keeping cause of this in germany
Prob one of the more important videos I have watched in months. Wasps have also disappeared almost entirely this year. Early in the presentation, the likelihood of human exposure seemed inetivatable and later confirmed. Scary stuff.
First point. We're had dogs for 25 years, never used flea treatments and never had any fleas. Second point we buy cane sugar, I know that's imported, (another problem), but I like to be helping Caribbean countries. Third point. Governments should be MADE to take more notice of their scientific advisors or other experts! Makes me so mad how they just ignore the facts and do what they want, Thank you Dave for a very informative video, very well explained.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
@@kaysimperfectgarden.4043We have a strict rule to only eat organic sugar.Although cane sugar may not need neonics they could spray with glyphosate at planting and at harvest
1. We stopped using flea treatment and all vaccines after we firmly believe it killed one of our cats. we now just check them with a flea comb & don't have a problem. 2. Local honey is a good alternative to sugar 😋 3. "Follow the money" Trusting ""government" scientific advisers" led to the lead scam, the diesel scam and, most recently, the convid scam and the wholly unsafe "vaccines". --cannot trust Government "advisers"
Saw sugar beet, and owning horses I clicked on this. Glad I did. So years ago I had a chat with a chemist about a chemical that was in a new treatment for horses to keep biting flies away. We got talking about permethrin and he was horrified when I told him this was in a product cleared for use in all cattle. Farmers told to shave a strip along the cows spine and pour a ‘measured’ dose along the shaved area. He asked if it was washed off, I told him no, and they can have multiple treatments. In fact when he told me it was a nerve toxin I read up a bit about it and found that some countries wouldn’t give farmers their subsidies if they refused to use it and many were not happy at all about having to use this. It was and is still used in uk for cattle, but I don’t know what, if any pressure is put on farmers to use this in uk. Vets told farmers its use on cattle was also good to keep the population of flies down.in that area. I don’t know if used much on sheep and pigs, but definitely cows.
Used to pour this or a similar product along the back of dairy and beef cattle. Possibly implicated in the development of BSE, even if it is not the initial cause.
One glaring problem that needs to be outlawed and prevented across ‘all’ regulatory agencies, are the ‘revolving doors.’ It is rife amongst heads of departments in these agencies to be persuaded (bribed) with promises of being rewarded with higher paid positions in the very industries which they are supposed to be regulating if they decide in favour of the industry wishes. We need to get together, as all regulators in all western countries have now been captured by corporate interests. Even in healthcare, our agencies are more protective of the financial health of the Pharmaceutical Healthcare Industrial Complex than they are of our health.
Going back 25 years, I was living in a shared space which obliged me to treat my dog with early generations of spot-on flea treatment, and I observed that the treatment put her off-colour for 3 or 4 days, including some minor loss of limb coordination and other minor symptoms suggesting neuropoisoning. After that I stopped using the products.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
@@chriswalford4161 yes, they licensed a wipe over, for horses for ticks and flies years ago. One of my young horses suffered loss of balance and coordination in legs and had to be destroyed. Similar to MS in humans vet said, but didn’t consider it to be the product. A gorgeous young horse he was. You can’t find the product anymore, it seems to have been quietly withdrawn. I can’t remember the name now it was so long ago, like 2004. And I had no proof, but it was since then I started to question these products.
As a Scottish beekeeper, I’ve been relatively content knowing that the Scottish Government won’t allow their use and that my bees are far enough away from the border not to be affected should they be used on crops on the English side - but your video has raised a horrifying thought. like most beekeepers, I feed my bees copious quantities of sugar syrup/fondant to give them enough food for the winter. Given that minuscule quantities are toxic to swathes of insects, how safe is the sugar I am feeding to my bees ? - Hayden
@@wendyknight9574 does anyone else ever notice this? When I’m pulling ragwort from my field I feel so guilty about depriving the bees, you see they are always covered in bees. And they are so transfixed on the flowers I practically have to shake them off. I see this every year, and the pasture has plenty flowers for the bees. Every year I’ve noticed this, so much so I’ve left the ragwort in the separate wooded area alone. Is this some sort of medication for them I wonder.?
@@RhizomeA2Go I'm a beekeeper from South Africa, my beekeeping mentor with 20 years of experience told me that our bees have shown signs that they do use different plants to combat certain issues in the colony. However, this observation needs to be studied further so that we can understand what plants they use to self-medicate and what they are using them for. In short, we have a long way to go before we truly understand what bees can do.🐝
One thing I don’t think you mentioned is when Bee keepers take the honey off the hives they have to give them sugar back. The bees are being fed on sugar throughout the winter. So sugar beet is fed to honeybees.
I don’t understand how the experts are saying it so clearly and the government still approves it. If you don’t listen to experts what’s your backup for it?
Thanks for uploading, you've raised some really excellent points, especially about sugar. As a 65 year old bloke living in England, I have seen the drastic changing of the climate - cold Winters are a thing of the past, the decimation of wildlife & other negative consequences of 21st century living. I find it immensely sad, I try my best to live a green lifestyle, have done for decades, but I'm tired of fighting, tired of nothing being done and thoroughly sick & tired of the bribery of politicians in order to dictate policy by Megacorp. I write to my MP, all I get back is a polite FU letter. I've noticed for years that no one speaks about changing the way we live, though Kit Pedlar said this in 1979 based on J Lovelocks hypothesis. Easier to posit a magic bullet like carbon capture, changing to electric cars but that's human's for you, we're programmed to take the easiest action. Lastly the only time humans in the past have taken hard decisions if after a disaster, that's if there are any survivors.
It astounds me the amount of chemicals used in farming. Fungicides, herbicides, insecticides, molluscides. Our farming system is totally dependent on them. I'm sure it's no coincidence that the chemical companies also sell the seeds for the crops. I understand why they need to use them as will anyone who has tried to grow anything in the garden. I think now we have the capability to develop non-chemical pest and weed control as well as natural methods such as companion cropping. We also need to diversify what we grow and eat. The garden this year has had loads of flowers in it and they've not been destroyed by slugs and snails because mostly they've been wildflowers (weeds and sown). We need to focus more on things that want to grow and not things that die at the first sign of a pest. Personally I think crops are engineered that way. If you want to sell tonnes of expensive chemicals you need to make sure the crops won't grow without them. I know that goes hand in hand with production ie the more productive a crop is the less disease resistant but if you are selling the seed and the chemicals where is the motivation to develop a different solution?
I went to a dung beetle conference at the Yeo Valley headquarters in the summer, a small animal vet gave a presentation about the spot on issues and how it affected river water and the environment. A lot of vets are corporate owned, and they recommend regular treatments of pets. Not good.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Yes, that was likely Martin whitehead who has done some of the research into the effects of these chemicals from oet treatments. Sadly he has sold his practice to one of those corporations 😐
Yes, that was likely Martin whitehead who has done some of the research into the effects of these chemicals from oet treatments. Sadly he has sold his practice to one of those corporations
I've contacted my (Labour) MP to flag the concerns you are raising here, after l saw the news in the Guardian last week. I also directed him to your books if he wants to look into this further. I've even signed the petition you have given the link to. Please keep raising your concerns and flagging this issue that affects us all.
Very eloquently put. I hope all pet owners are listening to the scientific evidence. The decline in insect numbers is alarming, affecting everything in the food chain. Thank you & best wishes. Al.
I found your talk very interesting, educational and worrying at the same time. I will now have to see what I can find on the subject about their use down here in Australia. Our government's are sadly renowned for shutting the door once the horse has bolted.
Great video, we use 'Flea Guard' yeast tablets for cats and dogs which are effective, re neonics check out John Kemp podcasts episode 76 with Tim Parton, the principle is that healthy plants are resilient to pest and disease, and that intensive agricultural methods are incapable of growing healthy plants! Please also consider that one of the reasons that sugar is so bad for us could be because it is contaminated with neurotoxins and glyphosates... I would argue that contaminated food lacking nutrient density is the main cause of the health crisis
Hi. I completly understand your frustration. Inspired by you I grow a lot of plants from seeds hoping they were not pretreated. It is just flower seeds, so probably not. But you can't help thinking of the lack of insects and wonder why. Fortunatly I had a nice experience in my garden. A Macroglossum Stellatsrum loved my Salvia Amistad. An insect I have never seen before here south of Copenhagen. So I hope with my small allotment, I can make a tiny difference
Nit combs used at as soon as a dog scratches, work a treat, in fact they were the best solution I found. Put he dog in the bath so the fleas cannot get away, and then have a tap running, to dispose of them, you have to be quick
Fleas are immune to fipronil now,they have been for years.Inseccts have a very fast life cycle,so fleas can become tolerant of insecticides quite rapidly.
I found the same with my cat who also had a tapeworm infestation, I used organic coconut oil to drown the fleas and make it easier to comb them out. When my cat washed himself he ingested some of the oil and it killed all the tapeworms too.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Remarkable. I used flea combs and baths when I couldn't afford the expensive drops but it was a constant battle which I never won. I live in a southern American state. Maybe it's different here.
@@YSLRD I had a small dog, I've had dogs that don't react to fleas and had some immunity, so my last lot didn't suffer. The one that did, nit combs were the only solution that worked Not having carpet could help
Thanks for this video. We struggle with fleas on our cats all the time. I've never wanted to use the chemical flea treatments and this video has reminded me why. I have always tried to use natural alternatives but without much success. We've kind of accepted we have to live with the fleas, and keep on top of washing and hoovering, but it's hard! And I'm the one in my family who is affected most by the bites, they are a nightmare!
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
There’s no solution really. I suffered terribly from feline flea bites to the point they made me ill. As two of my cats have lived well into their twenties and had frequent flea treatments and I’ve seen what happens when cats and dogs are take. Over by fleas I opted for flea treatments.
I use a child's nit comb and comb my cat and add a paper towel of cider vinegar over her coat when she goes outside socialising. I comb her daily and it certainly has helped.
Thank you so much for this. I’m sharing this info with the pet owners I know as I think many are unaware that such a common flea preventative is related to neonicotinoids
Thanks for this excellent explanation of the neonicotinamide situation. I will investigate its use here in South Africa. Where I live, in the middle of a wine-producing valley, the paucity of insect life is very evident. It is quite an event to see any butterflies other than the ubiquitous cabbage white.
Thank you so much for providing a trusted ecologist viewpoint. I'm interested in solitary bees etc and had followed the neonic saga, BUT I didn't realise that the sugarbeet growers ask for emergency use before they've even sown the crop! It's not emergency use then is it, it's a standard one. Fascinating research work about dog and cat flea treatments, which has troubled me for some time.
My local Labour MP was doing door to door before the election and told me if Labour win, he will be in charge of banning the insecticides. Hopefully he is still planning on doing that, I should write to remind him 🤞
@@Debbie-henri quite! He was actually telling me about their plans to save the bees because he asked how I was going to vote and I said green. I did email him to remind we had this conversation and what steps he was taking specifically regarding the British Sugar application - I got a very speedy, but sadly blatantly stock reply. Sigh.
I stopped using any pest control on my dog some years ago. I was unable to find any company or vet who could tell me what level of insecticide was excreted by treated animals, to contaminate the environment. The finding of two dead (sadly beautiful) dung beetles close to a dog poo, made me ask this question. Pesticides and herbicides are poisons. Many life processes are similar in any living thing. So I don't want to poison myself or the environment. Since I gave up these horrid chemicals, my dog has never had a flea. The occasional tick is picked off with a special tick twister.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
There’s a farmer in Lincs who asked his agronomist if they was an alternative to neonics for his oil seed rape. His answer was yes, slightly more expensive but if the same regime was also used on wheat crops overall cheaper. Overseas sugar growers can use 20 more pesticides/herbicides which are banned in the UK!
Thank you for this very informative and important video. I've been living in Northern Italy for much of the last 5 years, and I've noticed a huge reduction in bees. I've not seen one bee this year, yet I live in an area of much crop farming, particularly corn and sunflowers and huge areas of non cultivated greenery. Also, there are not many other insects except house flies and bluebottles, and I think that's due to the food waste buckets attracting them, which in turn only takes one bluebottle to lay it's eggs and a day later a seething mass of maggots 😮. Something is killing the bees but what? 😢😢😢
Sugar beet & sugar cane is very different! I lived in W. Africa, you could buy cane by the ft for pennies! People, kids would chew & suck on it & never had health or teeth issues! Locals cooked with pressed, sugar cane juice! No problems! Natural vs refined sugar is key!
Thanks so much for this video, have shared with everyone! I fully understand the issue now as you explain it so clearly and at an easy to understand pace. 👍🔬🌳🐝
Thank you for an excellent video. Governments do seem to bow to public pressure sometimes so could you or one of you students start a petition and write some articles for the media to raise awareness and get a counter to big pharma.
I too have written to my MP and had a vague, “we’re looking into it”, “next year”, blah blah. I’m wondering if the 10,000+ viewers who have seen this and feel equally outraged wrote to their MP it might have a bit more of an impact. We do need to do something. Is there a petition? Doesn’t the government have to debate the issue if over a certain figure sign? I feel so helpless. There are alternatives to how we do things.
I have a wild garden - No Mow for 22 years, and until this articles, I thought it was pesticide free too. But I did have a dog until about 2 years ago, and I did use Frontline on him, as he did pick up the odd tick and could be a bit difficult when we tried to remove them from sensitive areas. We thought Frontline was just easier for all of us. Had I the least idea this stuff was based on Neonicotinoids, I would never have touched the stuff and gone for something else instead. (I did try smothering one tick in oil, as a recommended alternative, but this took too long to work, Jim was getting uncomfortable, and the bite area swelled up terribly). Insect populations crashed in our garden, the birds went next, and everything else in the food chain plummeted - not just due to our use of Frontline, of course - but there are lots of dogs locally, probably also being treated the dame way, and I remember a rapeseed crop was being grown a few miles away over the other side of the hill. I hate the thought that I was a part of the problem, but since Jim died a couple of years ago, and we don't plan to get another dog, the immediate garden is starting to recover well. I've been bitten by more ticks than ever before, even before we got Jim, so I wonder if Neonicotinoids took out their natural predator. In fact, there was this new insect that appeared in the garden this year, and I've never seen its like before. Tried looking it up, with no luck whatsoever. It looks rather bee-shaped (Solitary bee shape, that is). The abdomen is a bright, shiny copper, no hairs. The upper part of its body is all a shade of mid-blue, no hairs. About the size and shape of a medium Solitary Bee, although the base of the abdomen is maybe a little rounder. Any ideas? I'd like to know because if there is any way I can encourage or help this little bug, I would. It's such an unusual colour for this type of insect.
Thanks, subscribed. (Job for weekend - prune youtube subscriptions, this one will stay.) Edit: just looked at what's available - rewilding garden - done that by accident, love it.
Hi Dave Thank you for this presentation of scientific evidence which is so routinely ignored by the needs of drugs companies to make money. Pesticides, fungicides and herbicides are like a fire which spreads out of control. We need to look to natural substances, or methodologies which are safe and effective. Sometimes it is a aimple practice that remedies the problem by observation and interaction and interpretation.
I'm looking forward to seeing you speak at The London Vet Show. I hope my colleagues are open to thinking about the damage we are perpetuating to out planet by our indiscriminate use of antiparisecticides. Sadly, many of my colleagues feel they have no choice but to toe the company line. Are you aware that a 12-month action injectable Bravecto for dogs is being launched at the London Vet Show?
Thankyou for this comprehensive,concise and heartfelt explanation. We urgently need to address the issue of declining insect numbers and I agree this is a very important part of the equation.
Thank you. So much excellent information. I am interested in sugar beet, not as a crop to produce sugar for human consumption, but to produce bioethanol. Among other things, this could be added to petrol to offset fossil fuel C emissions.
People are just not aware that there are alternatives to flea treatments. I used organic coconut oil with a nit comb on my cat and got rid of both his fleas and a tapeworm infestation when he later washed himself and ingested some of the oil.
I make my own flea powder, it's easy. diatomaceous earth (DE human grade) Yarrow powder and Neem power, mix together in a flour shaker and put through dogs coats. Wash all bedding and sprinkle powder under rugs and anywhere the fleas may hide. Dogs go a bit dusty for a couple of days, but it works and is harmless to the environment and all else - well other than the fleas of course! I very rarely have had to resort to using any chemicals, although I remember a few years ago having to use a flea 'bomb' to get rid of them in the environment, but only if absolutely necessary. The DE is made of crushed shells and has microscopic sharp edges that injure the fleas, the yarrow and neem are deterrents.
I’m just now house sitting where I am supposed to apply the flea medication to the cats, so I won’t but putting it in the trash will still eventually get into the environment, what a hell! I’m 69 and I’m so tired of this modern society! How should I dispose of it, fire?
Don't throw it away. It's expensive. Some cats have flea allergies when untreated. It's not your call. If you can't morally do it, tell the owners and pause the treatment.
fascinating rambling thank you.. the answer to reduce pesticides is to promote wholesome farming practices such as regenerative farming not the current business extraction agricide..
Dave, thank you for this. I collect succulents and want to protect them against vine weevil grubs. Do you have any natural recommendations? Many collectors use Bug Clear Ultra (and try to avoid use during the flowering season) but I know it's highly toxic and I've chosen not to use it, it contains acetamiprid and cypermethrin.
At the same time as lobbing to get these synthetic poisons banned perhaps we could promote and make fashionable again the traditional anti-flea treatment for both pets and humans. The herb Pennyroyal is perhaps the best know and was stuffed into hay mattresses etc. but there is also cedar oils and pellets of its wood and basil, citronella, clove, lavender, lemongrass, etc.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Excellent information. If humans didn’t waste so much food, or refuse to buy “imperfect” food such as produce that has grown into an odd shape, or has a mark on it but is perfectly edible, we wouldn’t have to grow so much food, and treat it with pesticides to make it perfect. Learn to cook reasonable amounts. Learn to eat leftovers, even it there isn’t enough for everyone one can increase the amount by adding to the left overs so there is. Suppliers often won’t accept farm “imperfect” produce so it is discarded. A waste of food, time, hours of work, petrol for the equipment, water to grow it & increase of air pollution for operating farm equipment & transportation vehicles. Use companion planting which discourages some insect pest from attacking different produce.
If memory serves correctly one report into fipronil suggested that dog hairs shed while walking outdoors can be used by birds for nesting, with adverse effects on egg viability. Do you believe this is the case ? Also thank you for a great overview.
Thank you for this information Dr Goulson but I fear it will now give me sleepless nights. I have 6 cats and 2 dogs and used diatomaceous earth to help with flea control, but recently had issues with flea allergies in some of my pets. These animals needed steroids to calm their skin issues then the vet advised regular treatment with a spot- on ,which as a concerned pet owner I complied with. Even with spot on Front-Line the issues continued. So Advocate was prescribed. The vet said she had come across other owners having issues with fleas even when Front-Line was used , this is one of the GSL spot -ons whereas Advocate is vet issue only ,and I think, a combination of chemicals. It is a frightening thought that ever more potent chemicals are being needed to control fleas on domestic pets when their toxicity to other insects is so great. I already hot wash dog and cat beds each week and use a steam mop on floors but will have to look at other less toxic means of flea control.
As typical the insects (fleas) are becoming immune to the toxin. E.g DDT. So, we apply more, higher doses, different new (probably untested) chemicals and cocktails. A long term non toxic (which you describe doing in your last line) methods must be sought.
Thanks for all the information. I am curious what effect all these agents have on the pets that are treated with them. They are all above a safe standard.
Thank you for sharing this. I'm shocked although I had wondered about dangers to fish in the leaflet of my dogs "Advocate" flea treatment. I won't use it again. You mention the Bravecto tablets which I have used but I was concerned they might be even more toxic for my dogs (and myself?) than a liquid "spot on!" I've shared the video on my Facebook page because I have a lot of dog owning followers. Thank you again.
These felt treatments are also very bad for dogs and cats. There is a whole "business" there. Dogs get ill, so for example they get seizures, or they get intestinal problems. Owner goes to the vet who treats these problems, often without succes as they continue to give the flea treatment. Maybe you can work together with specialist in this area as according to me, this should be forbidden. I in any case never treat my dogs and I had fleas only once in the past 25 years, so I think this is completely useless.
For home gardeners there are effective and bio-degradable alternatives to the nicotinamides type insecticides. In the old days gardeners would seep cigarette butts and/or pyrethrum plants (which is a type of chrysanthemum) in a bucket of water and spay that. Filter it first through a coffee filter or some such so it doesn't block up the spray nozzle.
90 percent of our 2 acre garden is wild/untouched and I no longer buy plants from garden centres to protect the insect life. Still not had the usual wasp and bee nests this year though. Just some hornets in September. (East of England)
A good start would be to put a warning on the over the counter medications stating that they are toxic to the environment, yourself, family and the pet itself.
Here’s the response to my email sent earlier today, asking what steps our local MP (now in charge of DEFRA) is taking to prevent British Shugar’s application from being granted: Dear Nat, Thank you for your email regarding neonicotinoids. I can assure you that the Government remains committed to updating existing policies to ban the use of these pesticides. Best wishes, Daniel Zeichner MP Daniel Zeichner Member of Parliament for Cambridge
Ambiguous wording. Updating the ban policies, or updating the policies to affirm the ban? And when? It could be updates to say something feeble like 'to phase out by 2040'.
Dear Nat, we have nothing to say because we don’t do anything unless it benefits us, please shut up and eat your sugar. Don’t write to me but please vote for me, best wishes, your local MP(malevolent piosoner).Ps if you pay me lots of money I may change my mind as I am of course for sale at the right price!😢
About France... Same situation. I live in Alsace and there is big sugar industry in Erstein with betroot production. Néonicotinoïds got forbidden but farmers demonstrated.... So they have been allowed again. It's heartbreaking. All in the name of jobs and money. Change is not easy as people have their livelihood depending on all the polluting and harmful industries. This sugar factory is trying to save itself but at what cost?
Here's the response for your cats, not sure about dogs. We live in Dordogne in France. The summer temperature is considerably higher than the UK and the winter temperature is similar to the cooler parts of the south-west, Bristol say. We use a flea comb. Not a pleasant job, but saves using the neonicotinoides. You can combine this with the use of diatomite earth on the cat fur and/or on floor tiling. Our vet tells that a certain number of fleas are natural and not unhealthy for a cat - but we find that from May to October we need to take these anti-flea measures which can avoid using a collar. Diatomaceous Earth, an amazing natural product! Diatoms are micro-algae whose fossilized skeletons form a sedimentary rock called diatomite. And by the way, who makes the collars and what else did they make ? Bayer. Bayer bought out Monsanto in 2016, Monsanto famed for the production of agent orange and of roundup and for the promotion of gm crops. Read about this in Monique Robin's The World According to Monsanto. Bayer themselves can hardly be considered to be squeaky clean, 50 years plus after the events, in 1995 they finally apologized for having experimented on camp prisoners in the second world war. In 2019, they funded President Macron's political movement En Marche in their European election campaign.
Great video. Does anyone know about neonic use in forestry? I heard that young trees were routinely treated before being planted-out in forestry schemes? This may be making even larger areas of land toxic to pollinators and other insects.
Neonicotinoids, would potentially be a good topic for the dullest video on TH-cam however I am very aware from watching farming videos that they are a double edged sword. Without them oil seed rape crops can be decimated. With them bees etc. can be decimated. A challenging choice. For many years my family had a proper dog, he was a mongrel a bit like an border collie. I pretty sure in the 15-years we had him we only ever treated very rarely to a flea treatment. We certainly did not do it as a matter of routine. Surely pet owners should be encouraged to do this only when there is a genuine flea problem. I guess if sugar was more expensive people would use less of it. Manufacturers of food love sugar because it is so cheap. There is an alternative which I have read about for sugar using precision fermentation. I am not bright enough to know if any of these are any good. Insects, 40-years ago after driving say from London to Leeds your car would be covered in flies now I barely get one on my car in the whole of the summer. Something definitely has reduced the population of insects. Thanks for sharing this video. I would rather have a dull video with good content, than a bouncy presenter talking drivel. I have subscribed.
Such an interesting talk thank you.. there are alternatives to flea treatments.. I'm good friends with our local cat rescue owner and on the 'community group' many people use herbal remedies which they say are great. I also bought a 'zapper' comb which uses batteries, doesn't hurt the cat and stuns the fleas as you comb so they're easily removed. Nit combs work well too but you have to be quick to get the fleas before they hop off the comb. Flea treatments are definitely not working as well anyway.. this is often discussed on the group with people comparing notes on which ones are resistant right now. Obviously the monthly vet treatment is ££££ driven... I'm going to post this videos on the group and recommend the few thousand members watch it. As for the insects, bees.. this is horrifying. Is there a petition for not allowing any usage as per 2018? Not even emergency useage! Ps.. I've had an allotment for 3 years now and I do not use any form of pesticide.. we all need to go back to learning companion planting.. there are plants that deter pests.
That's so interesting. A few years ago I suddenly became allergic to oil seed rape pollen when I had never been allergic before. This year I have had no problems. I have also become allergic to dogs, this has continued. I am a carer and stay in houses with dogs, if I touch them it triggers a reaction. Recently antihistamine hasn't protected me.
You should look into histamine intolerance and leaky gut as this is the main cause of allergic reactions I would also recommend stinging nettle tea if you can drink 4 cups a day this helps a lot, also look up the gaps diet by natasha cambel mcbride this is a really useful guide to healing the root cause if the above mentioned issues. Hope this helps. 👍
It's more about the persistence of the variois formulations. The specific formulation can be modified to only last a short time, and most of our insects would adapt very quickly. It's about the target species generation time. We have done the same thing to other perfectly good chemicals like the macro lactones/ivermectins. We just need to ensure our chemical engineers are aware and formulate chemicals appropriately. :D
Its even worse than that for the honeybees as commercial beekeepers feed sugar syrup to bees after taking their honey... what's in the sugar? Neonics. 😢
The Tories will always ignore the expert advice if to implement it would make their cronies less rich. Let’s hope Labour have at least some moral fibre.
Not very promising so far! Labour are like most anyone else in politics these days - in it for themselves... Don't forget the mass of freebies and using taxpayer's money for vanity photographs. Instead, they keep trying to steer us away from all that - by constantly bringing attention back to, firstly, the £25bn 'Black Hole,' and now a £40bn 'Black Hole' they've 'inherited' (funny how they got their maths wrong) - without mentioning any reference at all to the very high cost that Covid impacted on the entire nation, and how many other countries must also be showing equally massive debts due to exactly the same thing. The Tories can't be held responsible for Covid's appearance in Wuhan, nor to their reaction (as they, like everyone else, had to listen to the guidance of the WHO), nor for the huge amount of expenditure they put into fast-tracking a vaccine for the virus. To do the opposite to given advice 'might' have led to far worse consequences (hindsight opinions are completely irrelevant) - given all the initial evidence coming from China. At the time, everyone in the world was panicking, and we all know that certain countries never admitted the true figures of fatalities (especially China). That's where the vast bulk of this financial Black Hole came from in the first place, and leadership under Labour at that time would have led to pretty much the same level of debt. Someone needs to remind Labour of the great cost of COVID so they don't keep boring us to death with indications that the financial problem is due to any sort of absurdly chaotic financing by Tories - after all, when considering the achievements of the last 3 Tory PMs - Johnson was up to his neck in Covid matters, the idiot that followed lasted 3 weeks, and the next was a skilled mathematician who was dealing with the global aftermath of the virus. What is Starmer? Extremely unpopular so far, and well deserved too. I can't even look at any articles with him in them any more. His face and voice have the same highly repellent effect as Trump's. Thank god I never voted Labour...
Read a National Geographic article about the loss of Monarch butterflies in the western US (like 99% gone) . Not a mention in the article about neonicotinoids , the article attributed the decline to climate change and secondarily to habitat loss. Climate change may in the future be responsible but last I looked there were still flowering plants in the western US.
I was speaking to one of my local farmers last week. He stopped using insecticides on his large mixed farm 6 years ago. He's staggered by the increase in bird life on his farm and says that he has experienced no loss of productivity. He's now passionately engaging with local school and community groups to advocate greater soil health and to bring the debate around food production & biodiversity loss into everyday lives. I applaud him.
Wow. Is it in UK?
@@ConstructiveMinds100Yes, Dorset.
"stopped using insecticides"
I saw a video a while back with a soil expert going over someone's newly acquired farm.
No worms ...!!
Apparently this was most likely down to the use of toxins used in worming medication in livestock.
Rudolf Steiner's observation on soil health are as pertinent as ever, biodynamic agriculture dates back to 1924......worth a look....
@@aindriubradleymarshall6226 I have looked into it. I'm disturbed by some of Steiner's racist and discriminatory comments though. I won't clog up Dave's comment thread by discussing this further.
The loss of insect life and the consequential loss of higher life in my lifetime has been nothing short of catastrophic. I am 62yrs Old. I am sure that if we carry on for another 62 yrs like this there will be nothing left. This includes us Humans.
This explains bee colony collapse - among other things.
Our vet practice is always trying to sign dogs up to monthly (and lucrative) worm and flea treatment. I've been politely called a negligent owner, but I feel after 55 years of owning Jack Russells I can safely give worm tablets. As to the flea treatment, I always point out the environmental damage and refuse to put poison on him if he hasn't got fleas.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
@@sarahgriffiths-p5k yes, I agree and I didn’t sign up to use it on my dog either. Jack Russell, best wee ratters.
Pets are an environmental disaster anyway, mainly because of the production of pet food but also because the dry residue of their waste which ends up in phreatic waters and landfills, unlike ours which goes to treatment plants.
@@RhizomeA2Godon't forget the cairns... They rat like the best of the jack russells...
@ Ah yes, very true 😀
Thank you, Dr. Goulson. The problem is evident, and it's no longer about lacking data. The real issue is twofold: the general population's insufficient knowledge about the subject and the constant pressure from pesticide companies to suppress conversations. I truly appreciate your courage to speak publicly about this issue. Thank you for your hard work and for continuing to educate all of us on this matter. Best regards.
It's great to see you still crusading against neonicotinoids, Dave. What chance do our insects have with everything contaminated, from the root to the shoot to the fruit? Petition signed. Cheers, George NN
I have no idea how you can speak about this in such a measured and matter of fact way. Respect. The more I learn, the more I want to shout this from the rooftops! Feels like we are sleep walking off a cliff :(
I feel the same
you are not alone we are surrounded by idiots not knowing anything and we kill ourselves with this way of agriculture ....i stopped bee keeping cause of this in germany
This needs sharing everywhere,Now.
Utterly boring? No! Utterly terrifying.
@alexandersmith9489- Boring?
Prob one of the more important videos I have watched in months. Wasps have also disappeared almost entirely this year. Early in the presentation, the likelihood of human exposure seemed inetivatable and later confirmed. Scary stuff.
First point. We're had dogs for 25 years, never used flea treatments and never had any fleas. Second point we buy cane sugar, I know that's imported, (another problem), but I like to be helping Caribbean countries. Third point. Governments should be MADE to take more notice of their scientific advisors or other experts! Makes me so mad how they just ignore the facts and do what they want, Thank you Dave for a very informative video, very well explained.
I flea comb my cat and vacuum daily and have flea traps..
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Are neonics used on cane sugar too?
@@kaysimperfectgarden.4043We have a strict rule to only eat organic sugar.Although cane sugar may not need neonics they could spray with glyphosate at planting and at harvest
1. We stopped using flea treatment and all vaccines after we firmly believe it killed one of our cats. we now just check them with a flea comb & don't have a problem.
2. Local honey is a good alternative to sugar 😋
3. "Follow the money" Trusting ""government" scientific advisers" led to the lead scam, the diesel scam and, most recently, the convid scam and the wholly unsafe "vaccines". --cannot trust Government "advisers"
Saw sugar beet, and owning horses I clicked on this. Glad I did. So years ago I had a chat with a chemist about a chemical that was in a new treatment for horses to keep biting flies away. We got talking about permethrin and he was horrified when I told him this was in a product cleared for use in all cattle. Farmers told to shave a strip along the cows spine and pour a ‘measured’ dose along the shaved area. He asked if it was washed off, I told him no, and they can have multiple treatments. In fact when he told me it was a nerve toxin I read up a bit about it and found that some countries wouldn’t give farmers their subsidies if they refused to use it and many were not happy at all about having to use this. It was and is still used in uk for cattle, but I don’t know what, if any pressure is put on farmers to use this in uk. Vets told farmers its use on cattle was also good to keep the population of flies down.in that area. I don’t know if used much on sheep and pigs, but definitely cows.
Used to pour this or a similar product along the back of dairy and beef cattle. Possibly implicated in the development of BSE, even if it is not the initial cause.
i think permethrin is in head lice treatment for humans! I've used it on myself and my child gulp 😳
@@spamhead Glad I don't eat meat!!
cypermethrin, is used as a spray on application in sheep to stop flies from laying eggs on them. The maggots eat the sheep alive.
One glaring problem that needs to be outlawed and prevented across ‘all’ regulatory agencies, are the ‘revolving doors.’ It is rife amongst heads of departments in these agencies to be persuaded (bribed) with promises of being rewarded with higher paid positions in the very industries which they are supposed to be regulating if they decide in favour of the industry wishes.
We need to get together, as all regulators in all western countries have now been captured by corporate interests.
Even in healthcare, our agencies are more protective of the financial health of the Pharmaceutical Healthcare Industrial Complex than they are of our health.
Could there be any link between these nerve agents and dementia rates going up?
Going back 25 years, I was living in a shared space which obliged me to treat my dog with early generations of spot-on flea treatment, and I observed that the treatment put her off-colour for 3 or 4 days, including some minor loss of limb coordination and other minor symptoms suggesting neuropoisoning. After that I stopped using the products.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
@@chriswalford4161 yes, they licensed a wipe over, for horses for ticks and flies years ago. One of my young horses suffered loss of balance and coordination in legs and had to be destroyed. Similar to MS in humans vet said, but didn’t consider it to be the product. A gorgeous young horse he was. You can’t find the product anymore, it seems to have been quietly withdrawn. I can’t remember the name now it was so long ago, like 2004. And I had no proof, but it was since then I started to question these products.
As a Scottish beekeeper, I’ve been relatively content knowing that the Scottish Government won’t allow their use and that my bees are far enough away from the border not to be affected should they be used on crops on the English side - but your video has raised a horrifying thought. like most beekeepers, I feed my bees copious quantities of sugar syrup/fondant to give them enough food for the winter.
Given that minuscule quantities are toxic to swathes of insects, how safe is the sugar I am feeding to my bees ?
- Hayden
My thought exactly. I’ve started making feeding syrup up using cane sugar. I’m a beekeeper in N England 😢
Good question, no one has tested sugar for pesticides so far as I know
@@wendyknight9574 does anyone else ever notice this? When I’m pulling ragwort from my field I feel so guilty about depriving the bees, you see they are always covered in bees. And they are so transfixed on the flowers I practically have to shake them off. I see this every year, and the pasture has plenty flowers for the bees. Every year I’ve noticed this, so much so I’ve left the ragwort in the separate wooded area alone. Is this some sort of medication for them I wonder.?
The dogs and cats in Scotland are still being covered in neonicotinoids and fipronil. You're not safe north of the border 😞
@@RhizomeA2Go I'm a beekeeper from South Africa, my beekeeping mentor with 20 years of experience told me that our bees have shown signs that they do use different plants to combat certain issues in the colony. However, this observation needs to be studied further so that we can understand what plants they use to self-medicate and what they are using them for. In short, we have a long way to go before we truly understand what bees can do.🐝
Thank you for sharing this. Extremely unsettling facts....
One thing I don’t think you mentioned is when Bee keepers take the honey off the hives they have to give them sugar back. The bees are being fed on sugar throughout the winter. So sugar beet is fed to honeybees.
I don’t understand how the experts are saying it so clearly and the government still approves it. If you don’t listen to experts what’s your backup for it?
Thanks for uploading, you've raised some really excellent points, especially about sugar. As a 65 year old bloke living in England, I have seen the drastic changing of the climate - cold Winters are a thing of the past, the decimation of wildlife & other negative consequences of 21st century living. I find it immensely sad, I try my best to live a green lifestyle, have done for decades, but I'm tired of fighting, tired of nothing being done and thoroughly sick & tired of the bribery of politicians in order to dictate policy by Megacorp. I write to my MP, all I get back is a polite FU letter.
I've noticed for years that no one speaks about changing the way we live, though Kit Pedlar said this in 1979 based on J Lovelocks hypothesis. Easier to posit a magic bullet like carbon capture, changing to electric cars but that's human's for you, we're programmed to take the easiest action. Lastly the only time humans in the past have taken hard decisions if after a disaster, that's if there are any survivors.
Yes I feel the same way.
A friend planted heathers some years ago, to encourage bumble bees and then discovered that the nursery treated with neonicotinoids, which persisted.
Thank you so much! Please keep going. Here in Nova Scotia we need good examples.
It astounds me the amount of chemicals used in farming. Fungicides, herbicides, insecticides, molluscides. Our farming system is totally dependent on them. I'm sure it's no coincidence that the chemical companies also sell the seeds for the crops. I understand why they need to use them as will anyone who has tried to grow anything in the garden. I think now we have the capability to develop non-chemical pest and weed control as well as natural methods such as companion cropping. We also need to diversify what we grow and eat. The garden this year has had loads of flowers in it and they've not been destroyed by slugs and snails because mostly they've been wildflowers (weeds and sown). We need to focus more on things that want to grow and not things that die at the first sign of a pest. Personally I think crops are engineered that way. If you want to sell tonnes of expensive chemicals you need to make sure the crops won't grow without them. I know that goes hand in hand with production ie the more productive a crop is the less disease resistant but if you are selling the seed and the chemicals where is the motivation to develop a different solution?
I went to a dung beetle conference at the Yeo Valley headquarters in the summer, a small animal vet gave a presentation about the spot on issues and how it affected river water and the environment. A lot of vets are corporate owned, and they recommend regular treatments of pets. Not good.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Yes, that was likely Martin whitehead who has done some of the research into the effects of these chemicals from oet treatments. Sadly he has sold his practice to one of those corporations 😐
Yes, that was likely Martin whitehead who has done some of the research into the effects of these chemicals from oet treatments. Sadly he has sold his practice to one of those corporations
@@VetArtisUK
Over vaccination is worse. And it's often required by law.
I've contacted my (Labour) MP to flag the concerns you are raising here, after l saw the news in the Guardian last week. I also directed him to your books if he wants to look into this further. I've even signed the petition you have given the link to. Please keep raising your concerns and flagging this issue that affects us all.
Very eloquently put. I hope all pet owners are listening to the scientific evidence. The decline in insect numbers is alarming, affecting everything in the food chain. Thank you & best wishes. Al.
I found your talk very interesting, educational and worrying at the same time. I will now have to see what I can find on the subject about their use down here in Australia. Our government's are sadly renowned for shutting the door once the horse has bolted.
Great video, we use 'Flea Guard' yeast tablets for cats and dogs which are effective, re neonics check out John Kemp podcasts episode 76 with Tim Parton, the principle is that healthy plants are resilient to pest and disease, and that intensive agricultural methods are incapable of growing healthy plants! Please also consider that one of the reasons that sugar is so bad for us could be because it is contaminated with neurotoxins and glyphosates... I would argue that contaminated food lacking nutrient density is the main cause of the health crisis
Fantastic clear explanation Dave. Thanks! You should connect with neurologists like Bas Bloem in Netherlands
Hi.
I completly understand your frustration.
Inspired by you I grow a lot of plants from seeds hoping they were not pretreated. It is just flower seeds, so probably not.
But you can't help thinking of the lack of insects and wonder why.
Fortunatly I had a nice experience in my garden. A Macroglossum Stellatsrum loved my Salvia Amistad. An insect I have never seen before here south of Copenhagen.
So I hope with my small allotment, I can make a tiny difference
Nit combs used at as soon as a dog scratches, work a treat, in fact they were the best solution I found. Put he dog in the bath so the fleas cannot get away, and then have a tap running, to dispose of them, you have to be quick
Fleas are immune to fipronil now,they have been for years.Inseccts have a very fast life cycle,so fleas can become tolerant of insecticides quite rapidly.
I found the same with my cat who also had a tapeworm infestation, I used organic coconut oil to drown the fleas and make it easier to comb them out. When my cat washed himself he ingested some of the oil and it killed all the tapeworms too.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Remarkable. I used flea combs and baths when I couldn't afford the expensive drops but it was a constant battle which I never won. I live in a southern American state. Maybe it's different here.
@@YSLRD I had a small dog, I've had dogs that don't react to fleas and had some immunity, so my last lot didn't suffer. The one that did, nit combs were the only solution that worked
Not having carpet could help
Thank you so much for explaining this serious issue.
Had no idea even such micro actions as dogs' spot on can be that harmful to our environment. Thank you for de
Fipronil ceased to be effective as a flea-killer many years ago.
Thanks for the education. Signed and shared petition ❤
Thanks for this video. We struggle with fleas on our cats all the time. I've never wanted to use the chemical flea treatments and this video has reminded me why. I have always tried to use natural alternatives but without much success. We've kind of accepted we have to live with the fleas, and keep on top of washing and hoovering, but it's hard! And I'm the one in my family who is affected most by the bites, they are a nightmare!
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
There’s no solution really. I suffered terribly from feline flea bites to the point they made me ill. As two of my cats have lived well into their twenties and had frequent flea treatments and I’ve seen what happens when cats and dogs are take. Over by fleas I opted for flea treatments.
I use a child's nit comb and comb my cat and add a paper towel of cider vinegar over her coat when she goes outside socialising. I comb her daily and it certainly has helped.
Thank you so much for this. I’m sharing this info with the pet owners I know as I think many are unaware that such a common flea preventative is related to neonicotinoids
Thanks for this excellent explanation of the neonicotinamide situation. I will investigate its use here in South Africa. Where I live, in the middle of a wine-producing valley, the paucity of insect life is very evident. It is quite an event to see any butterflies other than the ubiquitous cabbage white.
Thank you so much for providing a trusted ecologist viewpoint. I'm interested in solitary bees etc and had followed the neonic saga, BUT I didn't realise that the sugarbeet growers ask for emergency use before they've even sown the crop! It's not emergency use then is it, it's a standard one.
Fascinating research work about dog and cat flea treatments, which has troubled me for some time.
Thank you for this critical information..
My local Labour MP was doing door to door before the election and told me if Labour win, he will be in charge of banning the insecticides. Hopefully he is still planning on doing that, I should write to remind him 🤞
I very much doubt it. Let's hope I'm wrong and it's the one thing they didn't lie about.
They are far too busy attending concerts and getting their freebies.
Words are cheap
They'll promise anything on your doorstep
@@Debbie-henri quite! He was actually telling me about their plans to save the bees because he asked how I was going to vote and I said green. I did email him to remind we had this conversation and what steps he was taking specifically regarding the British Sugar application - I got a very speedy, but sadly blatantly stock reply. Sigh.
I stopped using any pest control on my dog some years ago. I was unable to find any company or vet who could tell me what level of insecticide was excreted by treated animals, to contaminate the environment. The finding of two dead (sadly beautiful) dung beetles close to a dog poo, made me ask this question. Pesticides and herbicides are poisons. Many life processes are similar in any living thing. So I don't want to poison myself or the environment. Since I gave up these horrid chemicals, my dog has never had a flea. The occasional tick is picked off with a special tick twister.
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
There’s a farmer in Lincs who asked his agronomist if they was an alternative to neonics for his oil seed rape. His answer was yes, slightly more expensive but if the same regime was also used on wheat crops overall cheaper. Overseas sugar growers can use 20 more pesticides/herbicides which are banned in the UK!
Thank you for this very informative and important video.
I've been living in Northern Italy for much of the last 5 years, and I've noticed a huge reduction in bees. I've not seen one bee this year, yet I live in an area of much crop farming, particularly corn and sunflowers and huge areas of non cultivated greenery. Also, there are not many other insects except house flies and bluebottles, and I think that's due to the food waste buckets attracting them, which in turn only takes one bluebottle to lay it's eggs and a day later a seething mass of maggots 😮.
Something is killing the bees but what? 😢😢😢
Sugar beet & sugar cane is very different! I lived in W. Africa, you could buy cane by the ft for pennies! People, kids would chew & suck on it & never had health or teeth issues! Locals cooked with pressed, sugar cane juice! No problems! Natural vs refined sugar is key!
Thank you. Very thought provoking & concerning situation
Just discovered your channel by accident. I've subscribed and recommended your channel to everyone I know. Thanks for all the effort your putting in.
Thanks so much for this video, have shared with everyone! I fully understand the issue now as you explain it so clearly and at an easy to understand pace. 👍🔬🌳🐝
Thank you for an excellent video. Governments do seem to bow to public pressure sometimes so could you or one of you students start a petition and write some articles for the media to raise awareness and get a counter to big pharma.
The is already a Wildlife Trust petition, see link in video
Holy crap. Any mention how they breakdown in the environment?
Amazing detailed presentation. Thank you for highlighting this
I too have written to my MP and had a vague, “we’re looking into it”, “next year”, blah blah. I’m wondering if the 10,000+ viewers who have seen this and feel equally outraged wrote to their MP it might have a bit more of an impact.
We do need to do something.
Is there a petition? Doesn’t the government have to debate the issue if over a certain figure sign?
I feel so helpless. There are alternatives to how we do things.
the butterfly conservation trust is handing in a petition on Thursday to Defra of 42,000 signatures against use of neonicotinoids
I have a wild garden - No Mow for 22 years, and until this articles, I thought it was pesticide free too.
But I did have a dog until about 2 years ago, and I did use Frontline on him, as he did pick up the odd tick and could be a bit difficult when we tried to remove them from sensitive areas.
We thought Frontline was just easier for all of us.
Had I the least idea this stuff was based on Neonicotinoids, I would never have touched the stuff and gone for something else instead. (I did try smothering one tick in oil, as a recommended alternative, but this took too long to work, Jim was getting uncomfortable, and the bite area swelled up terribly).
Insect populations crashed in our garden, the birds went next, and everything else in the food chain plummeted - not just due to our use of Frontline, of course - but there are lots of dogs locally, probably also being treated the dame way, and I remember a rapeseed crop was being grown a few miles away over the other side of the hill.
I hate the thought that I was a part of the problem, but since Jim died a couple of years ago, and we don't plan to get another dog, the immediate garden is starting to recover well. I've been bitten by more ticks than ever before, even before we got Jim, so I wonder if Neonicotinoids took out their natural predator.
In fact, there was this new insect that appeared in the garden this year, and I've never seen its like before. Tried looking it up, with no luck whatsoever.
It looks rather bee-shaped (Solitary bee shape, that is). The abdomen is a bright, shiny copper, no hairs. The upper part of its body is all a shade of mid-blue, no hairs. About the size and shape of a medium Solitary Bee, although the base of the abdomen is maybe a little rounder.
Any ideas?
I'd like to know because if there is any way I can encourage or help this little bug, I would. It's such an unusual colour for this type of insect.
Sounds like a ruby tailed wasp? Beautiful. Look them up to find out more.
Thank you. A very clear explanation
I will only buy Cane Sugar myself (just check the label) and in time British Sugar will “have” to change.
well that was depressing, but i will tell people about this
Thanks, subscribed. (Job for weekend - prune youtube subscriptions, this one will stay.) Edit: just looked at what's available - rewilding garden - done that by accident, love it.
Hi Dave
Thank you for this presentation of scientific evidence which is so routinely ignored by the needs of drugs companies to make money.
Pesticides, fungicides and herbicides are like a fire which spreads out of control.
We need to look to natural substances, or methodologies which are safe and effective.
Sometimes it is a aimple practice that remedies the problem by observation and interaction and interpretation.
Excellent work. Hugely informative
I'm looking forward to seeing you speak at The London Vet Show. I hope my colleagues are open to thinking about the damage we are perpetuating to out planet by our indiscriminate use of antiparisecticides. Sadly, many of my colleagues feel they have no choice but to toe the company line. Are you aware that a 12-month action injectable Bravecto for dogs is being launched at the London Vet Show?
Hi, I hadn't heard, I assume no proper risk assessment?
@@davegoulson6831 The same as usual so woefully inadequate.
Thankyou for this comprehensive,concise and heartfelt explanation.
We urgently need to address the issue of declining insect numbers and I agree this is a very important part of the equation.
Thank you. So much excellent information. I am interested in sugar beet, not as a crop to produce sugar for human consumption, but to produce bioethanol. Among other things, this could be added to petrol to offset fossil fuel C emissions.
Thank you so much for explaining that, much appreciated.
People are just not aware that there are alternatives to flea treatments.
I used organic coconut oil with a nit comb on my cat and got rid of both his fleas and a tapeworm infestation when he later washed himself and ingested some of the oil.
Most interesting and worrying. Keep up the good work and keep making youtubes!
For a boring talk that was very interesting. Thank you!
Haven’t we heard this story before with DDT?
Bring back Rachel Carson!
I make my own flea powder, it's easy. diatomaceous earth (DE human grade) Yarrow powder and Neem power, mix together in a flour shaker and put through dogs coats. Wash all bedding and sprinkle powder under rugs and anywhere the fleas may hide. Dogs go a bit dusty for a couple of days, but it works and is harmless to the environment and all else - well other than the fleas of course! I very rarely have had to resort to using any chemicals, although I remember a few years ago having to use a flea 'bomb' to get rid of them in the environment, but only if absolutely necessary. The DE is made of crushed shells and has microscopic sharp edges that injure the fleas, the yarrow and neem are deterrents.
Thanks for this insightful and considered update Dave - adding comment to hopefully boost this wider 🤞👍
I’m just now house sitting where I am supposed to apply the flea medication to the cats, so I won’t but putting it in the trash will still eventually get into the environment, what a hell! I’m 69 and I’m so tired of this modern society! How should I dispose of it, fire?
Don't throw it away. It's expensive. Some cats have flea allergies when untreated. It's not your call.
If you can't morally do it, tell the owners and pause the treatment.
@ thanks, that is what I’m going to do.
fascinating rambling thank you.. the answer to reduce pesticides is to promote wholesome farming practices such as regenerative farming not the current business extraction agricide..
Dave, thank you for this.
I collect succulents and want to protect them against vine weevil grubs. Do you have any natural recommendations? Many collectors use Bug Clear Ultra (and try to avoid use during the flowering season) but I know it's highly toxic and I've chosen not to use it, it contains acetamiprid and cypermethrin.
At the same time as lobbing to get these synthetic poisons banned perhaps we could promote and make fashionable again the traditional anti-flea treatment for both pets and humans. The herb Pennyroyal is perhaps the best know and was stuffed into hay mattresses etc. but there is also cedar oils and pellets of its wood and basil, citronella, clove, lavender, lemongrass, etc.
The Mosquito Company Est. 2016 has a whole page on ‘Essential Oil Flea & Tick recipes for Dogs & Cats’
I was worried about flea treatments killing my dogs over the years . Convinced they cause cancers. So this year I only treated my dog twice with DIATOMACEOUS EARTH POWDER . NO FLEAS this year and no worry I am poisoning my dog ..
Great message. Great video.
Excellent information. If humans didn’t waste so much food, or refuse to buy “imperfect” food such as produce that has grown into an odd shape, or has a mark on it but is perfectly edible, we wouldn’t have to grow so much food, and treat it with pesticides to make it perfect. Learn to cook reasonable amounts. Learn to eat leftovers, even it there isn’t enough for everyone one can increase the amount by adding to the left overs so there is. Suppliers often won’t accept farm “imperfect” produce so it is discarded. A waste of food, time, hours of work, petrol for the equipment, water to grow it & increase of air pollution for operating farm equipment & transportation vehicles. Use companion planting which discourages some insect pest from attacking different produce.
Absolutely cracking! Sadly few that eat sugar are likely to care enough to watch this.
If memory serves correctly one report into fipronil suggested that dog hairs shed while walking outdoors can be used by birds for nesting, with adverse effects on egg viability. Do you believe this is the case ? Also thank you for a great overview.
We are investigating this right now, watch this space...
Good
Question
Thank you for this information Dr Goulson but I fear it will now give me sleepless nights. I have 6 cats and 2 dogs and used diatomaceous earth to help with flea control, but recently had issues with flea allergies in some of my pets. These animals needed steroids to calm their skin issues then the vet advised regular treatment with a spot- on ,which as a concerned pet owner I complied with. Even with spot on Front-Line the issues continued. So Advocate was prescribed. The vet said she had come across other owners having issues with fleas even when Front-Line was used , this is one of the GSL spot -ons whereas Advocate is vet issue only ,and I think, a combination of chemicals. It is a frightening thought that ever more potent chemicals are being needed to control fleas on domestic pets when their toxicity to other insects is so great. I already hot wash dog and cat beds each week and use a steam mop on floors but will have to look at other less toxic means of flea control.
As typical the insects (fleas) are becoming immune to the toxin. E.g DDT. So, we apply more, higher doses, different new (probably untested) chemicals and cocktails.
A long term non toxic (which you describe doing in your last line) methods must be sought.
Thanks for all the information. I am curious what effect all these agents have on the pets that are treated with them. They are all above a safe standard.
Thank you, Oh dear.
Thank you for sharing this. I'm shocked although I had wondered about dangers to fish in the leaflet of my dogs "Advocate" flea treatment. I won't use it again. You mention the Bravecto tablets which I have used but I was concerned they might be even more toxic for my dogs (and myself?) than a liquid "spot on!" I've shared the video on my Facebook page because I have a lot of dog owning followers. Thank you again.
Bonkers that we talk about a sugar tax yet subsidise the growing of sugar beet.
These felt treatments are also very bad for dogs and cats. There is a whole "business" there. Dogs get ill, so for example they get seizures, or they get intestinal problems. Owner goes to the vet who treats these problems, often without succes as they continue to give the flea treatment. Maybe you can work together with specialist in this area as according to me, this should be forbidden. I in any case never treat my dogs and I had fleas only once in the past 25 years, so I think this is completely useless.
For home gardeners there are effective and bio-degradable alternatives to the nicotinamides type insecticides. In the old days gardeners would seep cigarette butts and/or pyrethrum plants (which is a type of chrysanthemum) in a bucket of water and spay that. Filter it first through a coffee filter or some such so it doesn't block up the spray nozzle.
90 percent of our 2 acre garden is wild/untouched and I no longer buy plants from garden centres to protect the insect life. Still not had the usual wasp and bee nests this year though. Just some hornets in September. (East of England)
i was wondering why the bees where acting wierd. explains alot, thank you
Very useful information, Thank you Dr Goulson.
I loved your book, keep up the activism. Not sure we need sugar beet as it is a crop that feeds into bad diets.
A good start would be to put a warning on the over the counter medications stating that they are toxic to the environment, yourself, family and the pet itself.
Here’s the response to my email sent earlier today, asking what steps our local MP (now in charge of DEFRA) is taking to prevent British Shugar’s application from being granted:
Dear Nat,
Thank you for your email regarding neonicotinoids.
I can assure you that the Government remains committed to updating existing policies to ban the use of these pesticides.
Best wishes,
Daniel Zeichner MP
Daniel Zeichner
Member of Parliament for Cambridge
Ambiguous wording. Updating the ban policies, or updating the policies to affirm the ban? And when? It could be updates to say something feeble like 'to phase out by 2040'.
@@admi1191 indeed. Stock reply. Boo
Dear Nat, we have nothing to say because we don’t do anything unless it benefits us, please shut up and eat your sugar. Don’t write to me but please vote for me, best wishes, your local MP(malevolent piosoner).Ps if you pay me lots of money I may change my mind as I am of course for sale at the right price!😢
About France... Same situation. I live in Alsace and there is big sugar industry in Erstein with betroot production. Néonicotinoïds got forbidden but farmers demonstrated.... So they have been allowed again. It's heartbreaking. All in the name of jobs and money.
Change is not easy as people have their livelihood depending on all the polluting and harmful industries. This sugar factory is trying to save itself but at what cost?
Here's the response for your cats, not sure about dogs. We live in Dordogne in France. The summer temperature is considerably higher than the UK and the winter temperature is similar to the cooler parts of the south-west, Bristol say. We use a flea comb. Not a pleasant job, but saves using the neonicotinoides. You can combine this with the use of diatomite earth on the cat fur and/or on floor tiling. Our vet tells that a certain number of fleas are natural and not unhealthy for a cat - but we find that from May to October we need to take these anti-flea measures which can avoid using a collar. Diatomaceous Earth, an amazing natural product!
Diatoms are micro-algae whose fossilized skeletons form a sedimentary rock called diatomite. And by the way, who makes the collars and what else did they make ? Bayer. Bayer bought out Monsanto in 2016, Monsanto famed for the production of agent orange and of roundup and for the promotion of gm crops. Read about this in Monique Robin's The World According to Monsanto. Bayer themselves can hardly be considered to be squeaky clean, 50 years plus after the events, in 1995 they finally apologized for having experimented on camp prisoners in the second world war. In 2019, they funded President Macron's political movement En Marche in their European election campaign.
Great video.
Does anyone know about neonic use in forestry? I heard that young trees were routinely treated before being planted-out in forestry schemes? This may be making even larger areas of land toxic to pollinators and other insects.
Yes, acetamiprid is used to soak young trees :(
Neonicotinoids, would potentially be a good topic for the dullest video on TH-cam however I am very aware from watching farming videos that they are a double edged sword. Without them oil seed rape crops can be decimated. With them bees etc. can be decimated. A challenging choice. For many years my family had a proper dog, he was a mongrel a bit like an border collie. I pretty sure in the 15-years we had him we only ever treated very rarely to a flea treatment. We certainly did not do it as a matter of routine. Surely pet owners should be encouraged to do this only when there is a genuine flea problem. I guess if sugar was more expensive people would use less of it. Manufacturers of food love sugar because it is so cheap. There is an alternative which I have read about for sugar using precision fermentation. I am not bright enough to know if any of these are any good.
Insects, 40-years ago after driving say from London to Leeds your car would be covered in flies now I barely get one on my car in the whole of the summer. Something definitely has reduced the population of insects. Thanks for sharing this video. I would rather have a dull video with good content, than a bouncy presenter talking drivel. I have subscribed.
Such an interesting talk thank you.. there are alternatives to flea treatments.. I'm good friends with our local cat rescue owner and on the 'community group' many people use herbal remedies which they say are great. I also bought a 'zapper' comb which uses batteries, doesn't hurt the cat and stuns the fleas as you comb so they're easily removed. Nit combs work well too but you have to be quick to get the fleas before they hop off the comb. Flea treatments are definitely not working as well anyway.. this is often discussed on the group with people comparing notes on which ones are resistant right now. Obviously the monthly vet treatment is ££££ driven... I'm going to post this videos on the group and recommend the few thousand members watch it.
As for the insects, bees.. this is horrifying. Is there a petition for not allowing any usage as per 2018? Not even emergency useage!
Ps.. I've had an allotment for 3 years now and I do not use any form of pesticide.. we all need to go back to learning companion planting.. there are plants that deter pests.
That's so interesting. A few years ago I suddenly became allergic to oil seed rape pollen when I had never been allergic before. This year I have had no problems. I have also become allergic to dogs, this has continued. I am a carer and stay in houses with dogs, if I touch them it triggers a reaction. Recently antihistamine hasn't protected me.
You should look into histamine intolerance and leaky gut as this is the main cause of allergic reactions I would also recommend stinging nettle tea if you can drink 4 cups a day this helps a lot, also look up the gaps diet by natasha cambel mcbride this is a really useful guide to healing the root cause if the above mentioned issues. Hope this helps. 👍
It's more about the persistence of the variois formulations.
The specific formulation can be modified to only last a short time, and most of our insects would adapt very quickly. It's about the target species generation time.
We have done the same thing to other perfectly good chemicals like the macro lactones/ivermectins.
We just need to ensure our chemical engineers are aware and formulate chemicals appropriately.
:D
Its even worse than that for the honeybees as commercial beekeepers feed sugar syrup to bees after taking their honey... what's in the sugar? Neonics. 😢
The Tories will always ignore the expert advice if to implement it would make their cronies less rich. Let’s hope Labour have at least some moral fibre.
Sadly not looking very hopeful so far. :(
Not very promising so far!
Labour are like most anyone else in politics these days - in it for themselves... Don't forget the mass of freebies and using taxpayer's money for vanity photographs.
Instead, they keep trying to steer us away from all that - by constantly bringing attention back to, firstly, the £25bn 'Black Hole,' and now a £40bn 'Black Hole' they've 'inherited' (funny how they got their maths wrong) - without mentioning any reference at all to the very high cost that Covid impacted on the entire nation, and how many other countries must also be showing equally massive debts due to exactly the same thing.
The Tories can't be held responsible for Covid's appearance in Wuhan, nor to their reaction (as they, like everyone else, had to listen to the guidance of the WHO), nor for the huge amount of expenditure they put into fast-tracking a vaccine for the virus.
To do the opposite to given advice 'might' have led to far worse consequences (hindsight opinions are completely irrelevant) - given all the initial evidence coming from China.
At the time, everyone in the world was panicking, and we all know that certain countries never admitted the true figures of fatalities (especially China).
That's where the vast bulk of this financial Black Hole came from in the first place, and leadership under Labour at that time would have led to pretty much the same level of debt.
Someone needs to remind Labour of the great cost of COVID so they don't keep boring us to death with indications that the financial problem is due to any sort of absurdly chaotic financing by Tories - after all, when considering the achievements of the last 3 Tory PMs - Johnson was up to his neck in Covid matters, the idiot that followed lasted 3 weeks, and the next was a skilled mathematician who was dealing with the global aftermath of the virus.
What is Starmer?
Extremely unpopular so far, and well deserved too. I can't even look at any articles with him in them any more. His face and voice have the same highly repellent effect as Trump's. Thank god I never voted Labour...
😂😂😂
Read a National Geographic article about the loss of Monarch butterflies in the western US (like 99% gone) . Not a mention in the article about neonicotinoids , the article attributed the decline to climate change and secondarily to habitat loss. Climate change may in the future be responsible but last I looked there were still flowering plants in the western US.
Let me ask you Dr Goulson do the niconic's go into the honey that the bees are making?
Yes, 75% of honey from around the world contained neonics
.Im devastated. Thank you
Very interesting, thankyou.👍👍👍