Tag Archives | Colony Collapse Disorder

European Union To Ban Pesticides Linked To Mass Bee Deaths

By on May 3, 2013 in News 0

bee deaths

Via the BBC:

The European Commission will restrict the use of pesticides linked to bee deaths by researchers, despite a split among EU states on the issue. Neonicotinoid chemicals in pesticides are believed to harm bees and the European Commission says they should be restricted to crops not attractive to bees and other pollinators.

There is great concern across Europe about the collapse of bee populations. A report published by the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) in January concluded that the pesticides posed a “high acute risk” to pollinators, including honeybees.

There was ferocious lobbying both for and against in the run-up to Monday’s vote. Nearly three million signatures were collected in support of a ban. Chemical companies and pesticide manufacturers have been lobbying hard – they argue that the science is inconclusive, and that a ban would harm food production.

… Read the rest

Continue Reading · 0

Mass Death Of Bees Accelerated Greatly In 2012

By on April 9, 2013 in News 0

Perhaps genetically engineering poison into our food supply was a short-sighted idea, hints the New York Times:

A mysterious malady that has been killing honeybees en masse for several years appears to have expanded drastically in the last year, wiping out 40 percent or even 50 percent of the hives needed to pollinate many of the nation’s fruits and vegetables.

A conclusive explanation so far has escaped scientists studying the ailment, colony collapse disorder, since it first surfaced around 2005. But beekeepers and some researchers say there is growing evidence that a powerful new class of pesticides known as neonicotinoids, incorporated into the plants themselves, could be an important factor.

The European Union has proposed to ban the use of neonicotinoids on crops frequented by bees. Some researchers have concluded that neonicotinoids caused extensive die-offs in Germany and France.

The Agriculture Department says a quarter of the American diet, from apples to cherries to watermelons to onions, depends on pollination by honeybees.

… Read the rest

Continue Reading · 0

Bee Colony Collapse Rapidly Accelerates – Pesticides Blamed

By on March 29, 2013 in News 0

The alarm has been sounded by great documentary films like The Vanishing of the Bees, but governments around the world are still failing to protect our bees and therefore our food supply from the ravages of agrochemicals. Today’s New York Times claims that as many as half of the United States’ beehives have collapsed:

A mysterious malady that has been killing honeybees en masse for several years appears to have expanded drastically in the last year, commercial beekeepers say, wiping out 40 percent or even 50 percent of the hives needed to pollinate many of the nation’s fruits and vegetables.

A conclusive explanation so far has escaped scientists studying the ailment, colony collapse disorder, since it first surfaced around 2005. But beekeepers and some researchers say there is growing evidence that a powerful new class of pesticides known as neonicotinoids, incorporated into the plants themselves, could be an important factor.

… Read the rest

Continue Reading · 0

The Fox (Monsanto) Buys the Chicken Coop (Beeologics)

By on March 7, 2013 in News 13

Merovingian BeeA couple of years ago disinformation‘s sister video label True Mind released the colony collapse disorder documentary Vanishing of the Bees. It was fairly obvious that the biggest (if not only) cause of the mysterious disappearing colonies of bees was widespread pesticide use in monoculture farming. Everyone’s favorite corporate criminal Monsanto is now causing conspiracy theorists to go into overdrive with their acquistition of a company specializing in bee medicine. Richard Schiffman sounds the alarm at Huffington Post:

Why would one of the largest purveyors of pesticides, genetically engineered seeds and agrochemicals want to buy a company which has been seeking solutions to the escalating threats to the world bee population?

Monsanto spokeswomen Kelly Powers says it is to give the fledgling company a helping hand. Beeologics has developed a product called Remembee, an anti-viral agent which its boosters claim will help stem the tide of Colony Collapse Disorder, a mysterious plague which has led to the disappearance of the bees in up to a third of the commercial colonies located in the U.S.

… Read the rest

Continue Reading · 13

Ellen Page On The Vanishing Of The Bees

By on May 16, 2011 in News 3

The documentary film Vanishing of the Bees, narrated by Ellen Page, takes a piercing investigative look at the economic, political and ecological implications of the worldwide disappearance of the honeybee. Directors George Langworthy and Maryam Henein present not just a story about the mysterious phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder, but a platform of solutions, encouraging audiences to be the change they want to see in the world. In the video below, Ellen talks about the film:

Continue Reading · 3

Jesse Ventura Visits Disinformation (Video)

By on April 14, 2011 in News 77

Ventura 63 DocsJesse Ventura resumed his conversation with Gary Baddeley while visiting disinformation‘s NYC offices to promote his new book, 63 Documents the Government Doesn’t Want You to Read.

They covered everything from joining Ron Paul in the 2012 presidential election to the fall of World Trade Center 7 on 9/11, discussing many topics along the way including Colony Collapse Disorder, fluoride in municipal water supplies, legalization of drugs, and much more.

Continue Reading · 77

Ellen Page Talks Vanishing Bees With Bill Maher (Video)

By on April 4, 2011 in News 21

At last month’s SXSW film festival in Austin one of the highlights was Ellen Page’s superb performance in the new comics superhero indie movie Super. Not stopping for a moment to bask in the stellar reviews, Page is now promoting the documentary Vanishing of the Bees and went on Bill Maher’s HBO show last week to alert people to the serious problems that Colony Collapse Disorder creates for our food supply:

Continue Reading · 21

United Nations Sounds Alarm Over Vanishing Bees

By on March 10, 2011 in News 23

vanishing bees smalldisinformation readers have been aware of the frighteningly rapid onset of Colony Collapse Disorder for some time, and indeed here at disinfo we’ve allied with filmmakers George Langworthy and Maryam Henein to help distribute their superb film Vanishing of the Bees. The United Nations will be supporting the release of the film including screenings around World Environment Day (June 5), and are putting the word out on what is a very, very serious issue (as a reminder, commercial honeybee operations pollinate crops that make up one out of every three bites of food on our tables). From AFP via Yahoo News:

GENEVA (AFP) – The UN on Thursday expressed alarm at a huge decline in bee colonies under a multiple onslaught of pests and pollution, urging an international effort to save the pollinators that are vital for food crops.

Much of the decline, ranging up to 85 percent in some areas, is taking place in the industrialised northern hemisphere due to more than a dozen factors, according to a report by the UN’s environmental agency.

… Read the rest

Continue Reading · 23

The Bee Crisis

By on January 20, 2011 in News 0

Over a million people have signed this petition calling on governments to ban pesticides that kill bees:

We call on you to immediately ban the use of neonicotinoid pesticides until and unless new independent scientific studies prove they are safe. The catastrophic demise of bee colonies could put our whole food chain in danger. If you act urgently with precaution now, we could save bees from extinction.

If you are curious as to just why this is so important, here’s Tom Theobald, the whistleblowing beekeeper who “leaked” an EPA memo about the systemic pesticide Clothianidin. EPA scientists do not approve of the use of this toxic poison because of the damage caused to honeybees and other insects and invertebrates. Yet the EPA proposes the sale will simply continue. Here he discusses the EPA and the bigger picture problems that allowed this toxic chemical to be released onto the market – despite concerns of the EPA scientists.

Continue Reading · 0

U.S. Bee Deaths Caused By EPA Approved Pesticide

By on January 5, 2011 in News 14

Bees_Collecting_PollenCould this be the answer to the mysterious case of the disappearing bees? It could certainly be one reason for colony collapse. Report from Fast Company:

The world honey bee population has plunged in recent years, worrying beekeepers and farmers who know how critical bee pollination is for many crops. A number of theories have popped up as to why the North American honey bee population has declined–electromagnetic radiation, malnutrition, and climate change have all been pinpointed. Now a leaked EPA document reveals that the agency allowed the widespread use of a bee-toxic pesticide, despite warnings from EPA scientists.

The document, which was leaked to a Colorado beekeeper, shows that the EPA has ignored warnings about the use of clothianidin, a pesticide produced by Bayer that mainly is used to pre-treat corn seeds. The pesticide scooped up $262 million in sales in 2009 by farmers, who also use the substance on canola, soy, sugar beets, sunflowers, and wheat, according to Grist.

… Read the rest

Continue Reading · 14