Top News Stories On Monsanto’s Glyphosate & Take-away Facts

For more than 40 years, U.S. farmers have used glyphosate to kill weeds before planting corn feed for livestock. More recently glyphosate is being used by farmers growing Roundup-Ready GMO crops and as a desiccant, to speed the harvest of grain crops like wheat, oats and barley, as well as edible beans and several other crops. Such “harvest aid” uses of glyphosate entail spraying fields about two weeks prior to harvest. According to a February 2016 study in Environmental Sciences Europe, glyphosate is the most widely used pesticide. Stauffer Chemical Co. first patented glyphosate as a mineral chelator in 1964. Later, in 1974, Monsanto introduced this chelator as an herbicide.

Conventional farmers spray it on genetically engineered corn, soybeans and wheat before it is harvested. In the U.S., the herbicide has been considered safe since 2013, when Monsanto received approval from the US Environmental Protection Agency for increased tolerance levels for glyphosate.

• Americans have applied 1.8 million tons of glyphosate since its introduction in 1974.
• Worldwide 9.4 million tons of the chemical has been sprayed on fields – enough to spray nearly half a pound of Roundup on every cultivated acre of land in the world.
• Globally, glyphosate use has risen almost 15-fold since so-called “Roundup Ready,” genetically engineered glyphosate-tolerant crops were introduced in 1996.

Both the nature and severity of human health impacts following exposures to glyphosate herbicides are unknown. Despite a 20-fold increase in use over the last two decades, there has been no systematic effort by U.S. research or public health agencies to answer lingering questions. The reality is that glyphosate uses and exposures are way up. Glyphosate and metabolite residues concentrate in the liver and kidney and both animal studies and human investigations have highlighted liver and kidney problems.

Glyphosate has been under fire in the news over the past couple of years starting with the explosive announcement from the World Health Organization deeming the chemical a probable carcinogen.

Here’s a selection of some of the most important recent writing and research on glyphosate:

The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) ruled glyphosate a carcinogen.

The IARC said that along with other Monsanto chemicals Roundup could cause Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, autism, and cancer.

Monsanto Spin Doctors Target Cancer Scientist In Flawed Reuters Story.

In a well-orchestrated and highly coordinated media coup, Monsanto Co. and friends this week dropped a bombshell on opponents who are seeking to prove that the company’s beloved Roundup herbicide causes cancer.

A widely circulated story published June 14 in the global news outlet Reuters (for which I formerly worked) laid out what appeared to be a scandalous story of hidden information and a secretive scientist, “exclusive” revelations that the story said could have altered a critical 2015 classification that associated Monsanto’s Roundup to cancer and triggered waves of lawsuits against Monsanto.

Cancer Agency (IARC) Says Glyphosate Ruling Was Evenhanded.

The director of the UN International Agency for Research on Cancer rebutted criticism of his agency’s listing of glyphosate, the most widely used herbicide in the world, as probably carcinogenic to humans, saying the criticism included “repeated misrepresentations” of the IARC’s deliberations.

California Lists Glyphosate As a Carcinogen and Requires a Cancer Warning Label On Products

As of July 7, 2017, glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup weed killer, will be listed as a carcinogen in California. The move has triggered a requirement that glyphosate products sold in California carry a cancer warning under a state law called Proposition 65.

Monsanto Sues California Over Weed Killer Cancer Warnings.

Monsanto is fighting the state’s action in court. But a state appeals court and the California Supreme Court on June 22 denied the company’s request to stop the listing from taking effect while the case plays out. Monsanto and US farm groups are suing California to stop the state from issuing cancer warnings on the company’s herbicide glyphosate, which farmers use on genetically engineered crops.

Glyphosate Wins New Five-year Lease in Europe.

EU votes to reauthorize the pesticide, ending a bitterly fought battle that saw 1.3 million people sign a petition calling for a ban.

Medical Journals: Monsanto Glyphosate in Pee, Bad for Health.

New research in the prestigious medical journal JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association) reports on the startling evidence that glyphosate—the main ingredient in Monsanto’s weed-killer, Roundup—is not only getting into our bodies but has been doing so at increasing levels for decades. The paper, published today (JAMA October 24/31, 2017 Volume 318, Number 16) by medical experts from the University of California measured levels of glyphosate in the urine of one hundred people. The study subjects had been involved in a study since the 1970’s, which allowed the researchers to go back and look at historical and current levels of glyphosate in urine over decades. And, the trend is rising, as glyphosate crop uses rise across the country!

Glyphosate Persists – and European Top Soils Are Contaminated With It.

A new research study from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre and two Dutch laboratories shows that 45% of Europe’s topsoil contains glyphosate residues, demonstrating the over-reliance of the EU agricultural model on this harmful herbicide. Contrary to manufacturers’ claims, glyphosate persists in soils, not only affecting soil fertility and crop quality but also posing risks to human and environmental health.

The research study by the Dutch University of Wageningen and Rikilt laboratories, jointly with the JRC, reveals that among 317 EU soil samples of arable land, 42% contained AMPA, the most toxic metabolite of glyphosate, while glyphosate was found in 21% of the soils; 18% of the samples had both. The study was conducted in six crop systems in 11 EU member states comprising soils under different geographical and climatic conditions.

Denmark, the UK, and Portugal are the worst in this spectrum, with the highest detection frequency, while Italy and Greece seem to be the ones using less glyphosate on their crops. However and most notably, these two molecules could be found in every tested member state. All tested crops presented glyphosate and AMPA residues. By far the worst case was that of Portuguese vineyards.

Glyphosate Now The Most Used Ag Chemical Ever.

The mass-spraying of glyphosate has led to the explosion of resistant weeds, which have evolved to survive despite being sprayed. Already, weeds resistant to the herbicide are found on half of all American farmers’ fields and are present on upward of 100 million acres of cultivated cropland.

And here are some key facts to know about glyphosate to arm yourself with:

• The IARC said that along with other Monsanto chemicals, Roundup could cause Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, autism, and cancer.
• Glyphosate products sold in California carry a cancer-risk warning under a state law called Proposition 65.
• Monsanto and US farm groups are suing California to stop the state from issuing cancer-risk warnings on the company’s herbicide glyphosate.
• Glyphosate and its metabolite AMPA were tested in 317 EU agricultural topsoils.
• 21 percent of the tested EU topsoils contained glyphosate and 42 percent contained AMPA.
• Both glyphosate and AMPA had a maximum concentration in soil of 2 mgkg− 1.
• Americans have applied 1.8 million tons of glyphosate since its introduction in 1974.
• Worldwide 9.4 million tons of the chemical has been sprayed on fields – enough to spray nearly half a pound of Roundup on every cultivated acre of land in the world.
• Globally, glyphosate use has risen almost 15-fold since so-called “Roundup Ready,” genetically engineered glyphosate-tolerant crops were introduced in 1996.
• The mass-spraying of glyphosate has led to the explosion of resistant weeds, which have evolved to survive despite being sprayed. Already, weeds resistant to the herbicide are found on half of all American farmers’ fields and are present on upward of 100 million acres of cultivated cropland.
• In 1987, only 11 million pounds of the chemical were used on U.S. farms, but now nearly 300 million pounds of glyphosate are applied each year.