010 / Henk Tennekes

Henk Tennekes, Author of The Systemic Pesticides, A disaster in the Making was a Dutch Toxicologist who researched neonicotinoids, the most used agro chemicals on the planet. Henk wrote his book when he saw that these poisons would break the food chain at it's most critical link, the insect/invertebrate life system of the planet. Bayer and Academia at Wageningen University (EU equivalent to UC Davis University), who portray themselves as leaders in pollinator health, both blacklisted him and worked to destroy his career. They put a shot across the bow to those who would blow the whistle and expose the cozy relationship of Honeybee Academia and the chemical industry. Henk’s accent was difficult to understand, so I asked Tom Theobald, friend of Henk and activist beekeeper from Colorado, to stand in and read as Henk from the transcript. If you'd like the original interview of Henk please email me for a copy. Marc Pieterse, a Dutch admirer of Henk's work, took the time to translate Henk's interview into a transcript. Thank you Marc and Tom for all your help. And thank you Henk for seeing the future and warning us, even if you paid dearly for it.