GUANGZHOU, China (Reuters) - Scorpions scamper in bowls, water snakes coil in tanks and cats whine in cramped cages, waiting to be slaughtered, skinned and served for dinner.

Speaking at the Millau Court of Justice in southern France, where his four-month jail sentence for trashing a GMO field in 2004 was commuted to a fine, Bove said he would start his unlimited strike on January 3, along with 10 to 15 other activists.

LONDON (Reuters) - Agriculture in Britain is the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases after the energy sector but has the potential to be almost carbon neutral, an industry report issued on Monday said.

"Through accelerated uptake of energy efficiency and a range of renewable energy technologies, there is potential for agriculture ultimately to become almost carbon neutral," the report said.

LONDON (Reuters) - Turning off a sex "switch" triggered when female insects mate may be a smart and green way of controlling pests in future.

Compared to a total global power capacity of 4,300 GW, the report finds renewable energy (without large hydro) now provides about 240 Gigawatts (GW) of clean power, avoiding some 5 gigatonnes per year (Gt/year) of carbon emissions.

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Eleven workers who removed brains from slaughtered pigs at a plant in Minnesota have come down with a mysterious neurological condition, company and U.S. health officials said on Friday.

"Additional funding for (the Food and Drug Administration) is an important step toward improving our ability to protect human health and welfare," 23 senators from both parties wrote in the letter, also directed to budget director Jim Nussle.

COTONOU (Reuters) - Benin has discovered two outbreaks of bird flu among poultry which it believes to be the deadly H5N1 strain, the first such cases in the West African country, a senior health official said on Friday.

NAIROBI (Reuters) - Desert locusts have invaded Kenya's arid northeastern region, threatening maize and wheat crops, but the Agriculture Ministry said on Friday it was well prepared to fight the pests.

The desert locust's destructive power stems from its gregarious nature that allows it to move in swarms, eating whatever vegetation it finds in its path.

A ministry statement published in local newspapers said the locusts were not aggressively feeding yet, but were in their last stage of development and laying eggs in the moist sandy soil of the hot region.

PARIS (Reuters) - France formally suspended on Thursday the commercial use of genetically modified (GMO) seeds in the country until early February and ordered a biotech safety study.