An article in Bee Craft magazine caught my eye. The author, John Hoar, who is Spray Liaison Officer for Hampshire, has reviewed the use of pesticides on OSR from 1998 to 2014, using reports produced by Fera. Neonicotinoids were introduced in 2000 and the last year that seed was harvested from seed treated with them was 2014. “In respect of insecticides, the weight of insecticide active substances per hectare increased from 32g/ha in 2002 to 50g/ha in 2014. The number of insecticide spray rounds, products and active substances has also increased since 2002. Since the early 1990s, pesticide usage on OSR has increased significantly in terms of the number of times treated, weight per hectare applied and the number of active substances. Although Budge et al (2015) established that neonicotinoid seed coatings enabled farmers to reduce the number of insecticide sprays on OSR, this is not evident from the survey data after 2000 when neonicotinoid seeds dressings were introduced. ... the weight of insecticide active substance per hectare and the number of insecticide spray applications has continued to increase after the introduction of neonicotinoid insecticide seed treatments in 2000.” Best wishes Peter 52°14'44.44"N, 1°50'35"W *********************************************** The BEE-L mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html