EU Parliament Votes to Support Glyphosate Authorisation.

The European Parliament has voted overwhelmingly to support the re-authorisation of the key herbicide glyphosate.

NFU Scotland has welcomed the vote in Strasbourg as further evidence of the support for its re-authorisation amongst politicians, farmers and decision-makers.

The decision on re-authorisation of glyphosate ultimately lies with the European Commission and member states. NFU Scotland calls on them to follow the science and re-authorise glyphosate for a full 15 year term for all current uses.

Today’s vote in the European Parliament follows a spell of intense lobbying from NFU Scotland, and other UK farming unions, who joined forces to fight off attempts by campaigners to thwart the re-registration of glyphosate. Given glyphosate’s position as the most widely used herbicide, and the recent positive safety report issued by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), reauthorisation is both justified and essential.

EFSA, the key advisor to the European Union on pesticide safety – concluded that “glyphosate is unlikely to pose a carcinogenic hazard to humans”. This echoed earlier conclusions reached by the Federal Institute for Risk Assessment in Germany, which conducted the detailed review of glyphosate in the earlier stages of the re-registration process.

Ahead of today’s vote(13th of April), the unions had written jointly to the European Commission and key UK Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) to urge them to support re-registration.

NFU Scotland’s President Allan Bowie commented: “While today’s vote is non-binding, we hope it sends a clear signal to the Commission that glyphosate must have a place in the plant protection toolbox of growers for many years to come.

“We want to see science-led decision-making on plant protection products and most importantly a move to risk-based rather than hazard-based assessments. The current approach is forcing us to rely on fewer and fewer products which risks yields, quality and food safety.

“Glyphosate is a hugely important product for farmers and is used responsibly across Scotland and the EU. The best available science says it’s safe. We are glad European parliamentarians appear to have accepted its continued role in the production of safe, affordable, healthy food.

“At a farm level, the application of glyphosate remains the safest and most appropriate way to manage weeds and produce high quality crops.

“It is important that when the Commission arrives at its final decision, this herbicide remains as widely available to the industry as it is just now and that any decisions are driven by science and not rhetoric.”