Latest news with #herbicide
CBC
2 days ago
- Politics
- CBC
Green MLAs want quicker action on glyphosate report
Three and a half years after a report recommended tighter restrictions on glyphosate spraying, some lawmakers say the pace of implementation has been too slow. "It's clear that not a lot of work was done on it in that time," Green MLA Megan Mitton said. "There were some things completed and some things very recently completed, but I would have liked to see more progress." The report by the legislature's committee on climate change and environmental stewardship made a number of recommendations on the future of herbicide spraying in the province. It followed extensive hearings with scientists, foresters, Health Canada researchers, First Nations, industry and the public. The recommendations included larger setbacks from dwellings and watercourses, that N.B. Power phase out aerial glyphosate spraying and an analysis of potential alternatives. In an update to the committee, Christie Ward, the assistant deputy environment minister, said 11 of 20 recommendations have been "completed" to date, while the remaining nine are underway. Some MLAs pointed out, however, that what the department has implemented is not what the initial report actually recommended. "When you went through the recommendations of the committee that were unanimously adopted, you pointed to a number of those recommendations that were marked as completed, which were not implemented as recommended," David Coon told department staff Wednesday. "So essentially you rejected those recommendations." For example, the report called for setbacks from dwellings to increase to one kilometre from 500 metres. Ward said permits for aerial glyphosate spraying issued last year increased setbacks to 500 metres from 155 metres. Instead of the minimum 100-metre setback from watercourses recommended in the report, ground application requirements were moved to 30 metres from 15 metres, and aerial spraying requires a minimum distance of 65 metres. Ward said that the department has spent time trying to understand the intent of the committee's recommendations and to carry out the spirit of them, even those based on a misunderstanding of the regulations that already existed. "These recommendations are complex in some cases, many of them require rigorous scientific review, they also require a baseline of information, so you know where you're starting from and where you need to get to," she said. "There's been a lot of work done in the background to really understand all aspects of the pesticide program." But Mitton said she'd prefer a more direct answer from the department on whether the committee's recommendations have been followed. "When the auditor general has a report, there's a response from the department and then there's an update," she said. "I almost feel like we need a bit more of a formal process, or to bring them in more often, to keep that accountability going because I don't accept some of those answers as a checkmark." Environment Minister Gilles LePage backed up his staff, noting the report, which he helped prepare as an opposition member of the committee, did err at times in its understanding of existing regulations. However, LePage agreed with other comments over the pace of action on the report over the last few years. "In the past six years, I think there was a lack of work on that file, and that's why it's part of my mandate," he said. "I was part of the evolution of pesticides in this province, with the research on this committee, and I take it personally, and we are going to focus on pesticides even more than the previous government." LePage's mandate letter from Premier Susan Holt includes two mentions of herbicide spraying. One is to implement all recommendations from the committee's report. The other is to investigate alternatives to pesticide and herbicide use and "re-evaluate the safety of glyphosate with new and comprehensive data specific to New Brunswick." "We're looking daily and monthly on the impacts of how it's done," he said. "But don't forget, our regulations are very strong and very rigid for application and for use."
Zawya
20-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Bayer to close historic German factory in 2028 amidst sweeping restructuring
Bayer has announced plans to shut down its herbicide production and development operations at the Frankfurt am Main site by the end of 2028, marking the first closure of a German factory in the company's 161-year history. This decision is part of a broader restructuring of Bayer's Crop Science division, driven by global overcapacity, intense competition from low-cost Asian manufacturers, and increasing regulatory constraints in Europe. The Frankfurt facility, located in Industriepark Höchst, currently employs approximately 500 people. Bayer intends to sell or relocate parts of these operations, though the exact number of job losses has not been disclosed. The company has expressed its commitment to working with employee representatives to find suitable solutions for affected workers. Litigation, losses, layoffs This move is part of a larger effort by Bayer to streamline operations and reduce costs amid financial challenges. In the first quarter of 2025, Bayer reported a significant drop in net income, falling over 35% to €1.3bn from €2bn a year earlier. The decline was attributed to a near-tripling of litigation and restructuring costs to €587m and weakening sales performance. The company is also grappling with numerous US lawsuits alleging its glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup causes cancer, claims Bayer denies and is appealing. Despite these challenges, Bayer's pharmaceuticals division showed resilience, with a 4% increase in sales and 13% earnings growth, driven by strong demand for new drugs like Nubeqa and Kerendia. However, crop science revenues declined 4% during the same period. Chief executive officer Bill Anderson remains cautiously optimistic but noted uncertainty due to tariffs and regulatory pressures. The closure of the Frankfurt site and other restructuring measures are part of Bayer's strategy to focus on strategic and innovative technologies in the agriculture sector, aiming to return to growth from next year. All rights reserved. © 2022. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
RNZ News
20-05-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Thousands submit on proposed increase in glyphosate weedkiller allowed on some crops
The Ministry for Primary Industries is proposing substantially increasing the amount of glyphosate - the active ingredient in weedkillers like Roundup - allowed on some crops. Photo: 123RF The government is proposing increasing the amount of a controversial, likely cancer-causing herbicide allowed on food by 100-fold. That is despite environmental group Greenpeace saying current testing is already lacking. The Ministry for Primary Industries is proposing increasing the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) - the maximum legal level for residues of agricultural chemicals and veterinary medicines in food - for a number of substances including glyphosate, the active ingredient in weedkillers like Roundup. An MPI spokesperson said more than 3100 submissions on the proposal had been received by the closing date last Friday. Long controversial, the human health impacts of glyphosate are disputed. In 2015, the World Health Organisation deemed glyphosate a probable carcinogen and found strong evidence for genotoxicity, or the ability to damage DNA. The government was proposing increasing the MRL from 0.1 milligrams per kilogram for wheat, barley and oat grains to 10 milligrams per kilogram, and 6 milligrams per kilogram for peas. Greenpeace said the proposal was dangerous and out of step with other countries. There were also serious issues with the testing regime which gave little confidence the proposal was grounded in science, Greenpeace said. New Zealand Food Safety conducted annual monitoring of agrichemical residues in plant-based foods under the Food Residues Survey Programme (FRSP). Testing from about a decade ago, found a third of wheat samples had glyphosate levels exceeding the limit allowed , some by 50 times. In the 2016 report, MPI said "none of the wheat samples posed any food safety risks". Since then, Food Safety had not tested for glyphosate despite more than 500 other agrichemicals being tested for in the survey programme. The report also stated the ministry was "now proposing a review of the residues information for glyphosate". A decade on, the review is finally under way. Greenpeace campaigner Genevieve Toop said it appeared the ministry had simply stopped testing for glyphosate when it found samples breaching the limit. "MPI knew ten years ago that the food New Zealanders was eating was breaching the permissible limit for glyphosate on food. But rather than do anything about it, they just stopped looking," Toop said. The proposed new limit for wheat was twice what Canada and Australia allowed, Toop said. Photo: Plant&Food Research New Zealand The proposed changes would increase the amount of glyphosate residue allowed in wheat by one hundred times the current limit. The government had given "no meaningful justification" for lifting the limit, and the proposal was "part of a pattern by the government of disregard for human health, while prioritising corporate profits", Toop said. "This isn't a chemical that belongs in our paddocks or on our plates, and we certainly should not be allowing the government to allow the residue limits on the food we eat everyday." But submissions showed some saw the timing - as a bill to liberalise gene technology restrictions was working its way through parliament - as auspicious. The majority of genetically modified-crops used globally were Roundup Ready - resistant to glyphosate - which allowed growers to use more of the herbicide without affecting their harvest. A 2017 US study found human exposure to glyphosate increased 500 percent after the introduction of Roundup Ready crops. But New Zealand Food Safety deputy director-general Vincent Arbuckle said the proposed changes were "not, in any way, connected with the GMO Bill". The proposal was the first time a full evidence-based review and setting of a Maximum Residue Level for glyphosate had been undertaken in New Zealand, he said. The proposed new levels were similar to, or below, the voluntary glyphosate limit set by international food standards body Codex, Arbuckle said. Food Safety monitored residues in food grown for sale in New Zealand "to provide confidence good agricultural practice is being followed", and conducted "periodic testing", he said. A spokesperson later confirmed the most recent testing for glyphosate residue was in fact in 2015. Arbuckle said there was nothing untoward in the lack of glyphosate testing since 2015, but it was those results - 20 of 60 wheat samples were found to have breached the limit - that led to the proposed increase. "None of these detections were a food safety concern, but did indicate that the agreed instructions for use were not enabling farmers to use these products with confidence for weed control and comply with the MRL. To rectify this situation we are proposing the MRLs for these crops are changed," he said. "The sampling programme for each year is carefully targeted to focus on the products and agricultural compounds of most interest." The use and risk assessment of glyphosate had "not changed significantly since the last targeted survey was done and did not warrant prioritising it above other products in subsequent sampling programmes," Arbuckle said. Reports from overseas agencies such as the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation, the European Food Safety Authority and the United States Environmental Protection Agency were used to inform that decision, Arbuckle said. "Growers in New Zealand use glyphosate products as weed control, so it is not sprayed directly on wheat or other crops as this would kill the crop the farmer is growing," he said. The use of Roundup Ready crops overseas meant glyphosate residue levels were "substantially higher than we could conceivably see in crops grown in New Zealand". Green MP Steve Abel said the proposed rise in residue levels coincides with the "radical liberalistion" of genetic engineering law in New Zealand. Green MP Steve Abel says the changes prioritise convenience over human health. Photo: RNZ / Samuel Rillstone He was concerned the new proposed levels were laying the groundwork for future Roundup Ready crops in New Zealand. "We know from overseas evidence that means a big increase in the use of Roundup. It also leads to super weeds [that developed Roundup resistance] and to greater residues on food crops," he said. The proposed approach was not about safety, Abel said. "It seems the focus is orientated on the convenience of the chemicals' use rather than the protection of human health," he said. "The thinking is around the wrong way - the first consideration should be human health and the protection of the environment." There was no way higher maximum residue levels were better for the heath of farmers, farm workers spraying the chemical or the public consuming it, Abel said. In its submission on the proposed increase, Organics New Zealand noted the European Union's Farm to Fork Strategy - part of the European Green Deal - had set legally binding targets to reduce pesticide use by 50 percent and aimed to phase out the most harmful substances by 2030. The strategy included a forthcoming ban on the importation of food products containing residues of banned pesticides, which included glyphosate in some contexts. Organics New Zealand said the EU had 195 chemicals on its banned list, compared to New Zealand's 27, and the regulatory gap risked jeopardising exports. Meanwhile, a judicial review of the Environmental Protection Authority's refusal to conduct a full risk assessment of glyphosate would be heard in the High Court next month at the Environmental Law Initiative's request. Glyphosate was first registered as a poison in New Zealand in 1975, but a comprehensive risk assessment in a New Zealand context had never been undertaken, the initiative said. The permitted daily exposure (PDE) limit for food was set by the Environmental Risk Management Authority - the Environmental Protection Authority's predecessor - in 2004. University of Canterbury research in 2017 found a link between the use of the chemical and increased antibiotic resistance . A 2017 US Centre for Disease Control study found four-fifths of the population had glyphosate in their urine , which rose to 87 percent for those under 19 years old. However, the US Environmental Protection Agency found in 2020 glyphosate was not likely to be carcinogenic to humans, although a 2022 a federal appeals court rejected that, forcing the agency to withdraw the finding while further testing was conducted. In 2021, Japan blocked shipments of New Zealand honey after more stringent testing found traces of glyphosate exceeding its standard of 0.01 milligrams per kilogram. In recent years, Bayer - which acquired the manufacturing rights of Roundup when it purchased Monsanto in 2018 - had paid billions of dollars to settle cases over potential links to cancer , with another 67,000 cases pending. In 2023, Bayer announced it would no longer produce or sell glyphosate-based Roundup products for residential use in the United States , but said that was to prevent further court action, not because of safety concerns. In the same year, the European Union approved its use for another decade , after member states deadlocked for a second time on the issue. While no European countries have banned glyphosate completely, some, including France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and Germany have partial bans in place. Multiple challenges to the decision are before the European Court of Justice. Other studies have linked glyphosate to neuro-degenerative illnesses . In Feburary, a Canadian federal court judge ordered the government to reassess its 2022 approval of a glyphosate-containing product on the basis Health Canada failed to show it considered new scientific evidence identifying new or elevated risk. Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported Bayer was considering filing for bankruptcy for its Monsanto agriculture business should its settlement plan fail. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
