These articles are free but cost money to make, so please
make a donation and help us with the production costs.

Editorial

Pesticide use reduction
Opportunities for farmers to use fewer pesticides 3
Pesticide Action Network UK is setting up a Safe Alternatives Innovation Forum (SAIF) to find alternatives to chemical farming.  A preliminary meeting was held at Holme Lacy agricultural college, Herefordshire, in March. Over the next four pages, John Harvey examines the issues raised at the meeting.

Reducing the hazards in UK potato crops 4
Two dangerous chemicals are used to produce potatoes in the UK, aldicarb and sulphuric acid. Other growing systems have successfully eliminated their use. The Holme Lacy conference asked producers how they will help reduce dependence. John Harvey reports. 

Shortage of independent advice on pesticides 5
By far the biggest concern from the three working groups at the Holme Lacy meeting was the lack of resources devoted to helping farmers with practical ways of reducing pesticide use. 

Farmers and growers can cut pesticide use 6
Four presentations at Holme Lacy showed how farmers and growers working with the supermarkets can dramatically reduce pesticide use. Here, we examine three of them. 

European regulation
Farming industry waters down new standards 7
Environmentalists hoped that when the common agricultural policy was reformed under the Mid Term review, it would offer farmers support to manage the environment. But, as John Harvey reports, the review adds very little to what farmers should already be doing.

Agriculture in new EU countries
Joining the EU – an opportunity or threat for Polish farmers? 8
The enlargement of the European Union is now a fact, but its consequences for new Member States’ economies and rural areas are still unknown. Ewa Hajduk discusses the issues in Poland and other Central and Eastern European countries (CEEC). 

Agricultural change threatens birdlife in Cyprus 9
Abundant birds and other wildlife are still very much a feature of the Cypriot agricultural landscape, but for how long? As the eastern Mediterranean Island joins the European Union (EU), Martin Hellicar fears that agricultural intensification will erode biodiversity in local farmland. 

Slovakian agriculture under pressure with entry to the EU 10
Slovakia, with about five million people in the heart of Europe, became a member of the European Union on 1 May. How will this affect the country’s farmers? Daniel Lesinsky reports on the state of agriculture, and on a network set up to support ecological farming. 

Challenges for regulation in Hungary 11
Hungary is one of the big agricultural players in the new Member States, with a strong export economy. Whilst most of its 958,000 farmers are smallscale, 8,000 large enterprises dominate farming. The country also ranks as a pesticide producer on a global scale. Gergely Simon explores the issues of concern to Hungarian NGOs. 

Integrated pest management
Helping smallholders to supply European markets 12
The future of small-scale farmers exporting horticultural products from African, Caribbean and Pacific countries to Europe is frequently considered in doubt, due to much stricter food safety legislation, including pesticide residues. Exporters also need to comply with supermarket criteria for worker health and safety and environmental practices. Seth Gogoe reports on progress in Ghana with meeting new production standards. 

Biologicals help Kenyan growers 14
Meeting the strict quality standards of European markets is a challenge for horticulture growers and exporters in Africa. Louise Labuschagne reports on a positive shift towards Integrated Pest Management and biological control in the commercial sector in Kenya. 

News 
Doctors’ health warning 15
Canadian doctors have completed their biggest-ever analysis of the effects of chemicals on people. Their report makes disturbing reading.

Please keep Scotty off the lawn 15
Researchers at Purdue University in the United States have found a link between herbicides and bladder cancer in dogs. Now they are warning dog owners to keep an eye on where their pets are going.

Farmer field schools
Evaluating the success of farmer field schools in Senegal 16
Integrated Pest Management offers many benefits to farmers; but even well trained farmers can be restricted from implementing the technique due to external factors. Ben Gill analyses the situation for cotton farmers in Senegal. 

Chemical news
Methyl bromide exemptions flout rules of Montreal Protocol 18
From January 2005, all imports and manufacture of methyl bromide were scheduled to cease in industrialised countries, except for quarantine and official pre-shipment treatments. David Buffin summarises the outcome of a recent Montreal Protocol meeting which approved large exemptions.

Fact sheet
Glyphosate 20 
Glyphosate is used to kill unwanted plants (weeds) in crop fields, amenity areas and home gardens, and on a global scale it has become the most widely used pesticide. The manufacturers of glyphosate-based herbicides claim their ‘low toxicity and environmental friendliness’. However, recent independent research indicates that glyphosate may not be as safe as previously thought. By Richard Isenring.

UK News 22

Book reviews and resources 23