We support the work of the Voluntary Initiative in disseminating advice to farmers on implementing Integrated Pest Management strategies. However, there is scope to extend the scheme to incorporate a peer-to-peer advisory network to provide farmers with access to a range of advice for developing and implementing their own strategies. The Government should also support the development of new IPM technologies through research funding and other mechanisms. Once these technologies are demonstrate...

We support the work of the Voluntary Initiative in disseminating advice to farmers on implementing Integrated Pest Management strategies. However, there is scope to extend the scheme to incorporate a peer-to-peer advisory network to provide farmers with access to a range of advice for developing and implementing their own strategies. The Government should also support the development of new IPM technologies through research funding and other mechanisms. Once these technologies are demonstrated as effective, the Government should encourage farmers to implement them by incorporating their use as specific actions into the Environmental Land Mana Type: recommendation | Number: 22 | Paragraph: 136 | Response status: accepted Government response: Defra agrees that Integrated Pest Management (IPM) plays an important role in minimising the potential environmental impact of pesticides. Within the forthcoming National Action Plan for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides (NAP) we will set out our