CABI collaborates on innovative approach to tackling pesticide resistance evolution

Close-up of a southern armyworm on a leaf
CABI is joining an international team of scientists, led by the University of Stirling, to take a ‘revolutionary approach’ in attempting to tackle resistance to pesticides in insects with a specific focus on crops pests in Brazil. The £620,000 study will see UK-based Dr Belinda Luke working on the mass production of fungal biopesticides and formulation development…
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Suspected pesticide poisoning in India highlights importance of PPE

On 5th October, the BBC reported that at least 50 farmers have died in the western state of Mharashtra, India, since July, due to suspected accidental pesticide poisoning (see the full article on the BBC website). Nineteen of these deaths were reported from Yavatmal district, a major cotton growing area, where farmers use a variety…
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BioClay pesticide spray successful in recent trials

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Australian researchers have developed a new nanotechnology pesticide spray called BioClay which has shown success in recent trials. Developed by the Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI) and the Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), BioClay contains double stranded RNA which can be sprayed onto a crop. When the RNA contacts the…
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The price of organic farming…prison time?

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Judges in France are now considering an appropriate punishment for one organic winemaker who has refused to spray his vines with pesticides. Without spraying, they say he could be contributing to further infestation of the leafhopper Scaphoideus titanus in the region. As the Guardian in the UK reports, Emmanuel Giboulot now faces a 6-month prison sentence and a €30,000 fine for failing…
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