Relicensing glyphosate for 10 years inappropriate and unacceptable say MEPs

External sourcein Chemicals & Fertilisers

Glyphosate ATV
The European Parliament's MEPs Against Cancer group has hosted a briefing on "Cancer and Glyphosate", a chemical substance most used in herbicides in the EU.

Concerns about the carcinogenic properties of glyphosate-based herbicides have increased after the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) re-classified glyphosate as "probably carcinogenic to humans" last year.

The European Commission's Pesticides Committee is due to take a decision on re-licensing this month, and is expected to vote on an adjusted Commission proposal to extend the licence for a decade.

President of MEPs Against Cancer Alojz Peterle MEP, who is concerned about the re-licensing of glyphosate, says: "Given the wide use of herbicides containing glyphosate in Europe, this forthcoming decision is an important issue for cancer prevention, not only for farmers but also for every consumer. The Commission should respect the Parliament's resolution on glyphosate. I find it inappropriate for the Pesticides Committee to decide on this before further information is available."

Pavel Poc MEP Vice-President of MEPs Against Cancer says: "The new Commission proposal to re-authorise glyphosate for ten years without any specific restrictions is completely unacceptable, for agricultural uses which contribute most to people's exposures but especially when it comes to its use in public areas and its non-professional uses."

"The contradictory assessments by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the WHO agency (IARC) on the safety of glyphosate show the need to revise the whole authorisation process for pesticides in the EU in favour of more transparency, efficiency and democratic control."

You can read the full article from Agro News HERE

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