More than 40 people, including Greenpeace UK’s programme director, Amy Cameron, have been arrested after a protest outside pesticide company Syngenta’s Yorkshire headquarters.

A number of the activists locked themselves on to 15 blue pesticide barrels outside the headquarters, blocking the gates and leading to the temporary closure of the local A62. Activists had transformed a roundabout outside the front entrance into a giant hazard symbol carrying the message “Syngenta poisons nature” with an arrow pointing directly at the building. The action took place on World Bee day.

West Yorkshire police confirmed that “at 4.33am today (20 May), police received a report of a group of protesters outside the gates of a business premises off Leeds Road, Deighton, Huddersfield. Officers were deployed to the scene to monitor the situation and to ensure there was no wider disruption.

“A number of people were subsequently arrested and taken into custody on suspicion of offences connected to the incident.”

Greenpeace has accused Syngenta of driving wildlife decline and threatening UK food security by making and selling pesticides that poison British wildlife. A recent report by the NGO found that just one teaspoon of the Syngenta-made pesticide, Hallmark, was enough to kill 13 million bees.

Greenpeace UK co-executive director, Will McCallum, said of the arrests: “Today’s arrests are a huge overreaction by police ...

“If only the government channelled the same passion it shows for quashing peaceful protest into ending the silent crisis unfolding in our countryside. We need to drastically cut chemicals on our land and in our waterways, and farmers need funding to enable them to do it. This is crucial so that nature – the very foundations of our food system – can recover.”

A spokesperson for Syngenta said: “Syngenta respects the right of Greenpeace and others to express their views and to engage in public debate on how food should be produced. We share the goal of protecting the environment and supporting biodiversity – although may hold different views on how best to achieve this in practice.

“Syngenta believes crop protection products play a key role in global food security … Without effective crop protection, significant proportions of crops can be lost to pests, weeds, and disease, with serious consequences for food availability and cost.”