Friend,

As our society uses more pesticides, bee populations are plummeting.

That's a serious problem for our food supply, as we rely on bees to pollinate more than 70 of the 100 crops that provide 90% of the world's food.

But there's still time to reverse this trend and save our pollinators -- if we act quickly to eliminate the worst uses of bee-killing neonics. Take action by telling Bayer, one of the world's largest pesticide manufacturers, to stop using bee-killing pesticides.
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Thank you,

Faye Park
President

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: U.S. PIRG <[email protected]>
Date: Thu, Dec 8, 2022
Subject: Tell Bayer: Stop making bee-killing neonic pesticides
To: Friend <[email protected]>



We rely on bees to pollinate more than 70 of the 100 crops that provide 90% of the world's food -- but as our society uses more bee-killing "neonic" pesticides, bee populations are plummeting. Tell Bayer, which owns the pesticide manufacturer Monsanto: Help save our bees by cutting out toxic neonics. TAKE ACTION:
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Friend,

A class of bee-killing pesticides called "neonics" can be found all over our nation's yards, gardens and parks -- around 4 million pounds of these chemicals are sprayed on plants across the country every year.[1]

But if we keep allowing neonics to kill off massive numbers of the bees that pollinate some of the most essential crops, our food supply will face serious consequences.

Companies such as Bayer (which now owns the pesticide manufacturer previously known as Monsanto) can make a big impact by committing to end its sale of products with neonics in them. Add your name today to protect our bees -- and our food supply -- from toxic neonic pesticides.
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They may be small in size, but bees are invaluable when it comes to maintaining our planet's food supply -- and they're in jeopardy. As our society uses more pesticides, bee populations are plummeting.

If this trend continues, our food supply will face serious consequences. We rely on bees to pollinate more than 70 of the 100 crops that provide 90% of the world's food -- everything from the fruits, vegetables, nuts and cereal crops we rely on for sustenance, to the alfalfa we feed dairy cows.[2,3]

We shouldn't be putting our pollinators and our food at risk just so we can keep using a certain pesticide -- especially when safer alternatives are available. Take action by telling one of the world's largest pesticide manufacturers to stop using bee-killing neonics.
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Part of what makes neonics so deadly is how they're used. Neonics are often applied to the plant seed and to the soil surrounding it, making the entirety of the plant, including its pollen, lethal to bees looking to pollinate it as it grows.[4]

Worse still, when neonics end up in soil, the pesticide can stay actively toxic for years and travel far and wide to other plants through rainwater and irrigation systems. In 2013, neonics sprayed onto the blooming linden trees near a shopping center in Oregon resulted in the death of some 50,000 bees -- the largest mass bumblebee die-off ever recorded up to that point.[5]

If we don't have bees, the foods we love will slowly disappear. But there's still time to reverse this trend and save our pollinators -- if we act quickly to eliminate the worst uses of bee-killing neonics.

By combining the voices of thousands of citizen advocates like yourself with winning more local and state restrictions on neonics and getting the word out in the media, we have a real chance to get Bayer to act. And once we get such a huge industry player on board, the dominoes could start to fall.

Tell Bayer: Help save our bees by cutting out toxic neonic pesticides.
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Thank you for taking action,

Faye Park
President

1. "Effects of Neonicotinoid Pesticide Exposure on Human Health: A Systematic Review," National Library of Medicine, July 6, 2016.
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2. "Humans must change behavior to save bees, vital for food production -- UN report," United Nations, March 10, 2011.
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3. Hannah Ritchie, "How much of the world's food production is dependent on pollinators?" Our World in Data, August 2, 2021.
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4. Thomas James Wood, David Goulson, "The environmental risks of neonicotinoid pesticides: a review of evidence post 2013," Environmental Science and Pollution Research International, June 7, 2017.
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5. Elizabeth Grossman, "The day the bees died," Aljazeera, August 20, 2013.
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