Opening a new topic on the most efficient way for a worldwide consumer boycott of Bayer product up to the time Bayer completely withdraw the neonicotinoids pesticides as this pharma chemical group (along with Cheminova, Syngenta, BASF, FMC Corp, Adama Agricultural Solution, Monsanto, DOW Agroscience, Nufarm, DuPont....) still widely commercialise neonicotinoids around the world with dire consequences as all ASIF members should certainly be aware:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henk_Tennekes_%28toxicologist%29https://www.farmlandbirds.net/node/6186https://www.pnas.org/content/117/37/22609#:~:text=Neonicotinoids%20are%20used%20to%20manage,to%20pass%20to%20nontarget%20speciesToday everything related to both climate change and biodiversity is political as human kind destiny is highly dependent on both. I have always found the science side of climate change and loss of biodiversity fascinating, but if we do not act globally we will not even get the luxury to discuss any of these fascinating subjects behind our screens and about their cause and unwinding process, in a thirty, fifty or one hundred year time following a succession of crisis generated by run-away climate change and the 6th extinction.
Government and politicians continue with their green washing policy while ppm level of CO2 in the air keeps rising steadily and continuous loss of biodiversity seem unstoppable.
The topic would be to discuss
• how to raise maximum awareness to the wider public of Bayer’s neonicotinoid/neonics consequences (along with other pesticides produced by other equivalent pharma chemical conglomerate)
• building tools to act (e.g. mobile phone apps allowing to recognise Bayer products through scanning the bar code...)
• campaign networking through social media and other platforms
• campaign ‘on the ground”
• how not to disperse effort, but to be efficient and focused (there are multiple websites with lists of Bayer products to boycott, but with very little impact for the moment)
• May be targeting a selected handful of products to boycott (those with the highest margins) would be more efficient, for that we would need insiders with knowledge of the most profitable products
• how to involve the intermediate prescribers (doctors, veterinary, pharmacists,
farmers...) into the world boycott movement,
• other related subjects useful to a successful boycott campaign
Only consumer movement will be able to stop the sale of terribly destructive products for the biodiversity, as policymakers have failed to do so and will continue to fail.
In France a new “temporary” authorisation to use some neonicotinoids for beetroots farming (circa 450 000 hectares, a billions euros agro industry), was granted in December 2020 for 3 years, after they were banned 2 years ago… there have been partial interdictions in some European countries (not for all neonics) while neonics are still widely used in most parts of the world. Recent scientific studies show that neonics pollution / ecocide can be long lasting post interdiction.
"despite the evidence of negative effects on ecosystems as far as sediments (Bonmatin et al. 2019), and little productivity gains in food production, worldwide use of neonicotinoids and other insecticides continues to grow unabated with only a few exceptions as exemplified above."
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11356-021-12853-6https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/neonicotinoid-insecticides-market.htmlThis also could be applied to areas at the cross road of climate change and biodiversity, e.g. companies, including supply chains and logistics, involved into Amazonian forest depletion....
There is an incredible number of highly knowledgeable members on ASIF, that are able to devise excellent ideas to answer to this challenge.
I know people will say, this is highly challenging, difficult and complicated, to implement a globally efficient consumer boycott movement, but it is likely our only chance to succeed despite the hurdles. What would be needed, is an excellent strategic plan, and collaborative networking efforts through platforms and social media.