EU deputies fail to reach an agreement on glyphosate
7th of June, 2016
Yesterday, EU deputies failed, for the third time, to reach an agreement on whether or not to renew glyphosate, leaving the future of the product uncertain.
The herbicide, active ingredient of Roundup made by agrichemical group Monsanto, needs 55% of the vote to pass, but several countries are opposed to its continuation as it is suspected to affect bees and the health of the population. Only Malta voted against the proposal, 20 countries voted for it and 7 countries abstained.
For the past months, European Union deputies have tried to reach an agreement on glyphosate. The well known pesticide has to be renewed before the 1st of June to be sold in European countries. If there is no decision by this date, glyphosate will automatically lose its licence.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declared it “probably” carcinogenic in 2015, awakening the public to the risks of the product. Since then, even if the WHO did another study concluding on the harmlessness of the product, doubts remain and activist groups are campaigning against the pesticide. According to a recent YouGov poll two third of European are in favor of glyphosate ban.
If the EU were to ban glyphosate, they would be the first to take a stand against these potentially dangerous products for humans and the environment. However, there is the prospect that a legal response from the agrichemical industry will be launched.
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