The report gives evidence that neonics are present in very low amounts. And yet, they insist that neonic bans should be made permanent, while suggesting that "other" pesticides also be banned. It's clear that they have an anti-pesticide bias which makes the authors unable to evaluate the relative risk of these practices, painting them all with the same broad brush. Finally, they recommend "ecological farming" which is defined by Greenpeace at the bottom of this post.

The high detection rates reported for France in the Chauzat et al
(2009) study were not confirmed in work carried out by Lambert et al (2013) in Western
France, where only 0.8% of pollen samples tested positive for imidacloprid. Bernal et
al (2010) did not report any of the restricted neonicotinoids to be present in autumn- or
spring-sampled stored bee pollen from Spain. Hence, the relatively low numbers of
samples found in the current study to be contaminated with the three neonicotinoids
banned for some uses in Europe are broadly consistent with data reported in the existing
literature (see also Blacquiere et al 2012). 

Although no one measure alone is likely to be sufficient, it is possible to identify key policy
and practical actions that could begin to reverse the decline and secure the long-term
future of these species:

1. In order to confer greater protection to wild and cultured pollinators, restrictions
on the use of the systemic insecticides imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, clothianidin
and fipronil in seed dressings, soil applications and foliar spraying should be made
permanent, and expanded in scope to include other uses.

2. Furthermore, other insecticides known to be very harmful to bees, including
chlorpyrifos and the synthetic pyrethoids cypermethrin and deltamethrin, should also
be brought under strict control.

6. Funding for research and development of ecological farming practices should be
radically increased, in order to catalyse a move away from reliance on chemical pest
control towards biodiversity-based tools to control pests and enhance ecosystem
health.

* * *

Defining Ecological Farming
Greenpeace Research Laboratories Technical Note 04/2009

Ecological Farming ensures healthy farming and healthy food for today and tomorrow, by protecting soil, water and climate, promotes biodiversity, and does not contaminate the environment with chemical inputs or genetic engineering.

Destructive agriculture relies on non-renewable and artificial resources (fossil fuels, agrochemicals and genetically engineered seeds) that damage the natural resources needed for food production.

Think about what you eat: is it real food or some genetically modified product wrapped in plastics and chemicals that is more the result of biotech and fossil fuel than of soil and sun in a farm? 

A plant-based diet is better for our health, for our climate, for our forests, for our rivers and oceans, and for global food security, and it also helps keep food prices low (Nellemann et al., 2009). Because meat and dairy products require more phosphorus input that other foods, a change from the average western diet to a vegetarian diet could decrease phosphorus demand of fertilizers by at least 20-45% (Cordell et al., 2009).

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