Pesticides

In the fifty years since Rachel Carson first warned that toxic pesticides were destroying the natural world, pesticide use has massively increased.

A study published August 2019 in the science journal PLOS ONE, found that in the last 25 years U.S. agriculture has become 48 times more toxic to insect life. (More on this study below.)

The survival of birds and bees—and a world that we will recognize—demands a concerted effort to transition U.S. agriculture away from dependence on pesticides and toward ecological methods of pest management. We know how to do non-toxic pest control. Research shows that organic farms support more plant, insect and animal species, including up to 50% more pollinating species. And by eliminating harmful pesticides, they protect human health, both for farm workers and consumers of their agricultural products.

There are a considerable number of pesticides “of concern” due to their potential damage to bees, but two pesticides have the greatest current impact on our environment. These are the herbicide Glyphosate, best known by the brand name Roundup, and the class of insecticides known as Neonicotinoids.

Understanding their impacts and the scientific and agricultural concerns involved are important in the political pursuit of a new approach to food production.