Update, 20 September 2020: 

Breaking: a crucial meeting for bees will take place this Thursday, October 8 in Brussels. And unfortunately it does not look good for our precious bees: under pressure from the lobbies, the Commission will propose that EU countries adopt a dangerous proposal that will allow bee-killing pesticides to be easily authorized in Europe.

NGOs across all Europe are sounding the alarm: EU countries must reject the Commission's dangerous proposal.

Can you sign and share our petition calling on EU governments to ensure that no more bee-killing pesticides will be authorized in the EU?

We have a huge opportunity to save bees from killer pesticides. Right now European governments and the EU are rethinking how dangerous pesticides get approved. Together, we could persuade them to support much higher standards, that outlaw bee-harming pesticides.

The crux? Bayer and Dow’s lobbyists are doing all they can to keep their harmful chemicals on Europe’s fields.

Sign the urgent petition now, telling EU governments to make pesticide testing bee-friendly.

Toxic pesticides and intensive farming are killing and harming our bees -- yet more and more pesticides keep getting approved. Now we have a chance to curb this trend. 

The EU wants to improve the way it tests pesticides, to pay more attention to how they harm bees -- but first European governments have to approve this plan. Together, we need to persuade our governments to radically improve the system and adopt advice from scientists that puts harm done to bees front and centre.

The current method for testing pesticides is inadequate. It ignores major ways that bees can be harmed. But unless the EU feels under pressure, it could kick this into the long grass. That's why SumOfUs members like you are jumping into action, to tell the EU to consider the following effects of pesticides on bees: 

• The effects of pesticides on different types of bees, not just honeybees
• The long term effects of pesticides on bees and their colonies
• The cumulative effects of exposure to multiple pesticides
• And to only approve pesticides as a last resort, when all non-chemicals options have failed

Under pressure from SumOfUs members like you, the EU already trialled using these higher standards when considering three toxic neonic pesticides, which led to them being banned. And if the EU had adopted these tighter rules earlier, bee-harming chemicals like sulfoxaflor, flupyradifurone, and cyantraniliprole may never have been approved.

Can you sign the petition calling on European Governments to improve the way the EU tests all new pesticides?

We all rely on bees to pollinate fruit, vegetables and crops. But across the world bees are in decline, putting the future health of our planet at risk.

Industrial pesticides, climate change and urbanisation are pushing bees to the brink -- and unless our governments and the EU take concrete steps to save the bees, this trend shows no sign of reversing. 

Help urge Europe's governments to defy Bayer and Dow’s pesticide industry lobbyists by signing the SumOfUs petition.

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