A new DEFRA agency, the Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA), was formed on April 1 to support and develop a sustainable food chain.

The new agency also aims to promote a natural healthy environment and to protect the global community from biological and chemical risks.

The new agency brings together expertise in policy and regulations relating to seed, plant and bee health, inspection services for seeds, crops and horticulture, science and responding to and recovering from accidental or deliberate contamination of the built or open environment.

See www.defra.gov.uk/fera for more information.

On the same day, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) created the Chemicals Regulation Directorate (CRD), which brings together the delivery of HSE’s responsibilities for pesticides, biocides, detergents and industrial chemicals.

The directorate will integrate the existing functions of the regulatory and policy work of the Pesticides Safety Directorate and the Chemical Schemes Assessmet Unit of HSE, along with elements of human exposure and socio-economic assessment into a single regulatory unit. See www.hse.gov.uk/chemicals/index.htm