Field-scale tests have provided more evidence to show that bee populations are affected by neonicotinoid seed treatments, and suggested that the insects can become hooked on nectar laced with neonicotinoid pesticides.

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On Wednesday, Nick von Westenholz, CEO of the Crop Protection Association, which represents pesticide manufacturers, claimed the two studies published in the prestigious Nature journal are part of an "ongoing campaign to discredit neonicotinoid pesticides, regardless of what the real evidence shows."

Von Westenholz criticised the lab setting of the Newcastle study and suggested that the Swedish study used higher levels of neonicotinoids than would be found in agricultural fields. Researchers at the University of Lund, where the Swedish field study was conducted responded that they had followed industry guidelines.

Even so, von Westenholz said, "It is a shame that the debate around the use of these important technologies appears to be increasingly politicised, with anti-pesticide activists consistently promoting their agenda under the auspices of independent research."