Building work on Fera Science Limited’s new mesocosm testing facility is nearing completion in Sand Hutton, near York, UK. The E-Flows mesocosm is a groundbreaking project developed in partnership by Fera (formerly the Food and Environment Research Agency), the Centre for Crop Health and Protection (CHAP) and supported by Innovative UK. It has been designed, developed and will be managed and operated by Fera for use by the agri-tech industry and researchers.

EU member states have voted to impose a near- total ban on neonicotinoid insecticides – the most widely used class of insecticides in the world – across the region. The ban will cover all crops grown outdoors, but growers will still be free to use them in greenhouses across the EU.

Agrichemical giant Bayer has won EU antitrust approval for its US$62.5 billion acquisition of Monsanto, Reuters reports, on condition that Bayer sells off substantial parts of its business. If the merger goes ahead, it would create a company with control of more than a quarter of the world’s seed and pesticides market.