No moves to ban ‘neonics’ in South Africa

While international controversy over the use of neonicotinoid pesticides (neonics) continues, with its use in the EU now severely limited, there are currently no plans to limit or ban the use of these chemicals in South Africa.

In recent years, neonics have been fingered for allegedly contributing to the decline in populations of both wild and domesticated bees, and of other beneficial insect species, leading to a negative knock-on effect on ecosystems.

In a 2019 report published by the Academy of Science of South Africa, Prof Christian Pirk of the University of Pretoria’s Zoology and Entomology Department said neonics were widely used in South African crop production.

“Experiments with honeybees have shown that neonicotinoids decrease sucrose responsiveness of honeybees at first contact, thus reducing foraging efficiency, pollination services for treated crops, and nutrition and survival of the colonies. In addition, thiamethoxam impairs bees’ thermoregulation ability, both of their own bodies and the colony, and thus brood survival and health.”

Pirk added that while Africa’s ongoing human population growth required enhanced food production and, therefore, crop protection measures, this required a balance between the use of these and the need for important pollination services.

Dr Gerhard Verdoorn, manager of operations and stewardship at CropLife South Africa, told Farmer’s Weekly that neonics were currently permitted for use in South Africa in the form of seed dressings for certain vegetables and grain crops, and as soil drenches for certain tree nuts and citrus varieties. There were also a few registrations for the use of neonics as foliar applications, and these registration holders were part of a stewardship programme aimed at minimising the negative impact on pollinators.

“There’s currently no move to ban neonicotinoids for agricultural use [in South Africa] as there’s very limited or no evidence that their label-directed use poses a threat to pollinators or human beings. Our pest complexes are different from those of Northern Hemisphere nations, and South African producers need to use pesticides like neonicotinoids, which are necessary for producing pestand disease-free crops […].

“Total prohibition of neonicotinoids may force local producers to use harsh chemicals to control certain pests, which is totally undesired,” Verdoorn said.

He added that South Africa’s food producers were aware of the need to meet maximum residue levels of crop protection products on foods supplied to the EU, other importing countries, and retailers.

Farmers were also phasing in biological pest control technologies. However, these were only effective as part of integrated pest management in which cultivation practices and chemical pesticides still played an important role.