On 1st November 2023, Defra hosted a roundtable with members of the British sugar industry and environmental NGOs to discuss British Sugar’s action plan, the Virus Yellows Pathway to find alternative methods to neonicotinoids in controlling Virus Yellows in the British sugar crop. The roundtable allowed British Sugar to present their work to date, as well as allowing the opportunity for Defra and our external partners to encourage further work in this area. Of particular emphasis was the need for British Sugar to encourage peer-to-peer learning between sugar beet farmers. This would allow farmers who opt not to use neonicotinoids to share knowledge and help expedite the transition to neonicotinoid free farming, which I encourage British Sugar to take forward at pace.