Roundup boxes sit on a store shelf in San Francisco, Feb. 24, 2019. An EU decision on whether to allow the use of the controversial chemical herbicide glyphosate in the bloc has been delayed for at least 10 years after member states failed to reach an agreement. The chemical is widely used in 27 countries and was approved for sale on the EU market by mid-December. (AP Photo/Haven Daily, File)
BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Commission will continue to use the controversial chemical herbicide glyphosate in the European Union for another 10 years after the 27 member states again failed to agree on an extension.
EU representatives failed to reach a decision last month, and a new vote by the appeals committee on Thursday was again inconclusive. As a result of the impasse, the EU chief executive said he would back his own proposal and extend glyphosate approval for 10 years with new conditions added.
“These restrictions include prohibition of pre-harvest use as a desiccant and the need to take certain measures to protect non-target organisms,” the company said in a statement.
The chemical, widely used in the EU, caused much outrage among environmental groups and was not approved for sale on the EU market until mid-December.
The Green Party political group in the European Parliament immediately called on the European Commission to phase out the use of glyphosate and ban it.
“We should not risk our biodiversity and public health in this way,” said Bas Eickhout, deputy chairman of the environment committee.
Over the past decade, glyphosate, used in products such as the herbicide Roundup, has been at the center of fierce scientific debate about whether it causes cancer and the damage it can cause to the environment. The chemical was introduced by chemical giant Monsanto in 1974 as a way to effectively kill weeds while leaving crops and other plants untouched.
Bayer acquired Monsanto for $63 billion in 2018 and faces thousands of lawsuits and lawsuits related to Roundup. In 2020, Bayer announced it would pay up to $10.9 billion to settle approximately 125,000 filed and unfiled claims. Just weeks ago, a California jury awarded $332 million to a man who sued Monsanto, claiming his cancer was linked to decades of Roundup use.
France’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, a subsidiary of the World Health Organization, classified glyphosate as a “possible human carcinogen” in 2015.
But the EU food safety agency said in July that “no critical areas of concern have been identified” in the use of glyphosate, paving the way for a 10-year extension.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found in 2020 that the herbicide did not pose a risk to human health, but last year a federal appeals court in California ordered the agency to reconsider that decision, saying it was not supported by sufficient evidence.
The 10-year extension proposed by the European Commission requires a “qualified majority”, or 55% of the 27 member states, representing at least 65% of the total EU population (about 450 million people). But this goal was not achieved and the final decision was left to the EU executive.
Pascal Canfin, chairman of the European Parliament’s environment committee, accused the European Commission president of moving forward despite the impasse.
“So Ursula von der Leyen rammed the issue by re-authorizing glyphosate for ten years without a majority, while the continent’s three biggest agricultural powers (France, Germany and Italy) did not support the proposal,” he wrote on social media X. Previously the network was called Twitter. “I deeply regret this.”
In France, President Emmanuel Macron vowed to ban glyphosate by 2021 but later backtracked, with the country saying before the vote it would abstain rather than call for a ban.
EU Member States are responsible for authorizing products for use in their domestic markets after a safety assessment.
Germany, the EU’s largest economy, plans to stop using glyphosate starting next year, but the decision could be challenged. For example, a nationwide ban in Luxembourg was overturned in court earlier this year.
Greenpeace has called on the EU to refuse to reauthorize the market, citing studies showing glyphosate can cause cancer and other health problems and may be toxic to bees. However, the agribusiness sector says there are no viable alternatives.
Post time: Mar-27-2024