Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to his announcement of 9 November 2017 on exploring alternatives to neonicotinoids, what plans his Department has to encourage and support (a) better pest and disease forecasting, (b) disease resistant crop varieties, (c) agronomic methods such as companion cropping and maximising the control provided by natural predators and (d) other non-chemical techniques to help sugar beet farmers control aphids.

There is a range of available options to deal with the threat of pests to crops; these include the use of alternative insecticides, integrated pest management, and changing cropping practices and planting times. It is for individual farm businesses and their agronomists to take the decision on what is most appropriate for them.

Defra supports research into integrated pest management and developing new and more pest resistant crop varieties, including funding for Crop Genetic Improvement Networks for major UK crops. These research networks focus on breeding to improve resource efficiency, sustainability, and resistance to pests and diseases, in order to reduce reliance on chemical inputs to agriculture.

Defra has also announced a £300,000 investment over three years in a new project on sustainable crop production which will include research on integrated pest management.