The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on April 30 announced that it continues to find no risks to public health from glyphosate when the herbicide is used in accordance with its current label. The findings of its latest review of glyphosate support the EPA’s 2017 health risk assessment of the herbicide, which found that the product is not a carcinogen.
“EPA has found no risks to public health from the current registered uses of glyphosate,” said EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler. “Today’s proposed action includes new management measures that will help farmers use glyphosate in the most effective and efficient way possible, including pollinator protections. We look forward to input from farmers and other stakeholders to ensure that the draft management measures are workable, realistic, and effective.”
The EPA’s announcement is a big win for Bayer, which acquired glyphosate manufacturer Monsanto Co. last year (GM June 8, 2018). Bayer has suffered some legal setbacks related to glyphosate, including an August 2018 decision by a California jury (GM Aug. 17. 2018) awarding $289 million in damages to a groundskeeper who claimed RoundUp gave him cancer, although that amount was later reduced to $78 million (GM Oct. 26, 2018).
A U.S. jury awarded a second California man more than $80 million in March over a similar claim, and there are currently 13,400 other Roundup lawsuits pending in U.S. courts. Bayer said it will appeal the rulings.
“Bayer firmly believes that the science supports the safety of glyphosate-based herbicides, which are some of the most thoroughly studied products of their kind, and is pleased that the regulators tasked with assessing this extensive body of science continue to reach favorable conclusions,” Bayer said in a statement following the EPA announcement.
Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in U.S. agriculture, EPA noted, and is approved for use on more than 100 food crops, including glyphosate-resistant corn, soybeans, cotton, canola, and sugar beets. Non-agricultural uses include residential areas, aquatic areas, forests, rights of way, ornamentals, and turf.
“If we are going to feed 10 billion people by 2050, we are going to need all the tools at our disposal, which includes the use of glyphosate,” USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue said in response to the EPA announcement. “USDA applauds EPA’s proposed registration decision as it is science-based and consistent with the findings of other regulatory authorities that glyphosate does not pose a carcinogenic hazard to humans.”
The EPA conclusion was criticized by a number of environmental groups, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Environmental Working Group, and the Center for Biological Diversity. It is also at odds with the findings of a 2015 World Health Organization study, which classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” A more recent meta-analyses by researchers from the University of Washington also found that glyphosate exposure raises cancer risks by 41 percent.
Earlier this year, however, Health Canada concluded that concerns about glyphosate safety “could not be scientifically supported” after a thorough scientific review. Health Canada noted that the 20 scientists who conducted the review “left no stone unturned” and “had access to all relevant data and information from federal and provincial governments, international regulatory agencies, published scientific reports, and multiple pesticide manufacturers.”
Following a Federal Register notice publishing EPA’s findings, the public will be able to submit comments on EPA’s proposed decision at www.regulations.gov in docket # EPA-HQ-OPP-2009-0361.