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DISCUSSION No. 131 • FSN Forum digest No. 1256
How can we protect pollinators and promote their role in environmental and agricultural practices?
until 9 September 2016
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Dear Members,
The ongoing discussion How can we protect pollinators and promote their role in environmental and agricultural practices?<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/activities/discussions/pollination> attracted new comments which we share below.
Contributors already shared very interesting information on activities that promote pollinators and provided their suggestions on what needs to be done to encourage pollinator-friendly practices in general.
We encourage you to keep posting your comments on these important topics during the last days of this online discussion.
For background information on the topic and to read all contributions received so far, please visit the discussion page in English<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/activities/discussions/pollination>, French<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/fr/activities/discussions/pollination> or Spanish<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/es/activities/discussions/pollination>.
We look forward to keep receiving your comments!
Your FSN Forum team
CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED
[icon]Bibhu Santosh Behera, Ouat Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India
Bibhu shares information on an exposure visit regarding the Farmer Field School approach and argues that the agricultural practices used in this approach help promote pollinators.
Read the contribution <http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7374>
[icon]Michele Baron, Kyrgyzstan
Michele presents the Mobile Garden Carts project he implemented in various countries for the promotion of food security. He suggests that Mobile Garden Carts could be outfitted with small apiaries. In addition, in particular where food supply is less a priority than protecting pollinators, they can include pollinator-friendly plants to promote pollinators. Mobile Garden Carts can be adapted to and placed in a wide variety of locations.
Read the contribution<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7375>
[icon]Amanullah Khan, the University of Agriculture Peshawar, Pakistan
Dr. Amanullah refers to his recent studies, which showed that intercropping (peas or faba bean) and canola with winter cereals (wheat or barley) attracted more honeybees than cultivating winter cereals alone. Likewise, the presence of pollinators increased when pigeon pea or mung bean were intercropped with summer cereals (sorghum or millets). Replacing a cereal-based cropping system with only monocots with a cropping system including both monocots and dicots could improve soil and environmental quality.
Read the contribution<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7377>
[icon]Elizabeth Mpofu, Zimbabwe Smallholder Organic Farmers Forum (ZIMSOFF), Zimbabwe
Elizabeth stresses that we often forget that besides bees, there are many other pollinating insects. She argues that the decline of pollinators should be documented and that campaigns against the use of GMOs and agrochemicals should be organized. Water harvesting, on the other hand, should be encouraged.
Read the contribution<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7378>
[icon]Salomeyesudas, Nalla Kerai (Good Greens), India
Salomeyesudas informs us about research of the Indian Deccan Development Society on alternatives to the use of chemicals for soil nutrition and pest and disease management. The organization has documented agricultural methods implemented by farmers in the Medak district; the most efficient ones have been summarized in a document Salomeyesudas shares.
Read the contribution<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7380>
[icon]Andrew MacMillan, Formerly FAO, Italy
Andrew stresses the need for more research on relationships between pollinators and crops, and on other links in the ‘ecological chain’, in order create a better understanding of the impact of technology changes in farming. Regulatory bodies should receive resources to commission the research required to prove the safety of products before approving their (large-scale) use in agriculture. In addition, Andrew comments on a solution suggested by multiple contributors: creating pollinator habitats on less productive farm areas. Andrew points out that honeybees travel over 3 km to forage for nectar and pollen; if insecticides are used on crops that attract bees and end up in the pollen or nectar, pollinator habitats will achieve little reduction in the intake of the contaminated products of foraging unless they are far away from the crops in question.
Read the contribution<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7379>
[icon]Romano De Vivo, Syngenta, Switzerland
Romano argues that many different factors affect pollinator health, including pesticide use and climate change. He shares resources confirming the multifaceted nature of the issue of pollinator health, and argues that there is a need to move towards more sustainable agricultural practices and to reverse the simplification of agricultural landscapes.
Read the contribution<http://www.fao.org/fsnforum/comment/7381>
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