Honey bees, already at risk, face a new threat from a common herbicide

It seems that glyphosate may not be so innocuous after all. Studies are beginning to reveal deleterious effects of glyphosate on non-target species - animals. One of these species, whose pollinating activities are hugely important to biodiversity and to human food security, is the honey bee. This insect is the main pollinator in the agricultural environments in which glyphosate is so heavily used.

 How worried should we be that glyphosate was found in our Cheerios?

It depends on which scientific organization—or advocacy group—you ask.

How extensive is the threat from weed killers

The third factor is that besides it being used to grow crops it is also now used to kill some crops like peas, oats, wheat and barley. The goal is to spray the weed killer three to eight days prior to harvest to prevent sprouting. This puts glyphosate directly into the food supply. Does it get into our bodies? Yes.

The EPA is meant to protect us. The Monsanto trials suggest it isn't doing that

Three public trials involving Monsanto have raised troubling questions about lax oversight of all pesticides by the Environmental Protection Agency.

Despite Rulings, Farmers Remain Loyal to Bayer’s Roundup

Bayer’s premier herbicide is still the dominant treatment for U.S. crops because of its low cost and effectiveness.

Glyphosate: Unsafe on Any Plate

After reading this report, which confirms glyphosate contamination in our food supply, as well as findings of glyphosate in drinking water, rain and the air, the first question you might ask yourself, is how can I avoid unwanted glyphosate residues in my, or my family’s, daily meals?

The time for glyphosate-based herbicides is over

Industry claims that glyphosate is "safe" are reminiscent of similar claims made in the past over cigarette smoke, DDT, PCBs, thalidomide, diethylstilbestrol (DES), Agent Orange, atrazine, flame retardants, phthalates, bisphenol A, and artificial fragrances – all of which are endocrine disruptors. Consumers are confused, and some are angry and frustrated with regulatory decisions dealing with the biosafety assessment of many commercial products. At the very least many of us feel that the influence of industry has been too strong in regulatory decisions.

Weedkiller products more toxic than their active ingredient, tests show

After more than 40 years of widespread use, new scientific tests show formulated weedkillers have higher rates of toxicity to human cells.

Where is Glyphosate Banned?

A number of cities, counties, states and countries throughout the world have taken steps to either restrict or ban glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup weed killer.

Broken Promises of Genetically Modified Crops

About 20 years ago, the United States and Canada began introducing genetic modifications in agriculture. Europe did not embrace the technology, yet it achieved increases in yield and decreases in pesticide use on a par with, or even better than, the United States, where genetically modified crops are widely grown.

Does The Herbicide RoundUp® Cause Cancer?

The bottom line: even in those with very high exposures to glyphosate, the evidence that it causes any type of cancer is very weak. And for ordinary consumers, there's nothing to worry about.

How Toxic is the World’s Most Popular Herbicide Roundup?

There’s no question that the research around this small molecule has become highly politicized. Environmental activists have claimed that exposure is linked to everything from cancer to celiac disease to autism, while on the other hand, industry-backed reviews have insisted the pesticide has no untoward effects whatsoever. So where does the science actually stand?

Monsanto's Roundup Is Losing Ground, But It's Temporary

If Roundup is proved carcinogenic, the problem of the agricultural sector is that there is not a visible safe alternative, with the properties of glyphosate, the main ingredient of Roundup, that would be equally successful at weed killing.

Monsanto, RoundUp and Junk Science

Today, 90 percent or more of the corn, soy, canola, sugar beets grown on U.S. cropland are varieties that have been engineered to tolerate glyphosate.

Monsanto’s most popular weedkiller is giving the world’s bees stomachaches

New research adds to a growing body of evidence that suggests Monsanto’s ubiquitious and controversial weedkiller, RoundUp, is delivering to bees a sucker-punch to the gut.

Stop worrying and trust the evidence: it’s very unlikely Roundup causes cancer

Glyphosate is one of the most used herbicides worldwide. It kills weeds by targeting a specific pathway (the shikimic acid pathway) that exists in plants and a type of bacteria (eubacteria), but not animals (or humans). In terms of short-term exposure, glyphosate is less toxic than table salt. However, it’s chronic, or long-term, exposure to glyphosate that’s causing the controversy.

The FDA found traces of Monsanto’s controversial chemical glyphosate in common grocery items

There’s a pretty good chance people in the US are eating low levels of a commonly used and controversial herbicide, though whether that poses a danger to human health remains unclear.

The Guardian's Scare Piece On Glyphosate And Cancer Is Designed To Fuel A Tsunami of Lawsuits

For someone who actually knows something about the relevant facts and context, the piece by Levin and Gillam trades on fear and ignorance to raise the specter of an epidemic of cancer caused by glyphosate and to cash in on the tsunami of litigation involving patients who believe that exposure to Roundup caused their cancer. Here are some key facts that they leave out, and that convey a very different picture.

There is no evidence that the weedkiller glyphosate causes cancer

But while the jury ruled that Johnson’s cancer, a non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, was probably caused by glyphosate, the evidence for a link is extremely thin.

Weedkiller cancer ruling: What do we know about glyphosate?

Some countries and regions - such as Portugal, Italy and the Canadian city of Vancouver - have banned glyphosate use in public parks and gardens. Its effect on plants is non-selective, meaning it will kill most of them when applied. Some crops, such as soybean, have been genetically modified to resist glyphosate.

What Do We Really Know About Roundup Weed Killer?

It’s probably in your garage and on your lawn. And it’s used on nearly every acre of corn and soy. But what risks does it pose?

Widely Used Herbicide Linked to Cancer

The World Health Organization's research arm declares glyphosate a probable carcinogen. What's the evidence?

With Monsanto, Bayer will need more Aspirin

Monsanto, now a division of Bayer, has been ordered to pay a whopping US$289 million to a single American person, a former gardener, who developed cancer, allegedly through the use of their products. Dewayne Johnson testified that he applied the product — Ranger Pro, a highly concentrated version of Roundup weedkiller, which contains glyphosate — 20 to 30 times per year while working as a school groundskeeper. He told a jury in San Francisco that he had two accidents at work, in which he was soaked with the product. In 2014, he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Earlier this year, Bayer bought Monsanto for US$62 billion — all cash — in hopes to grow its business on both sides of the Atlantic and beyond. But even if Monsanto’s brands no longer exist as such, its legacy remains. Given that 5,000 other similar cases regarding Roundup are currently in progress in the United States alone, Bayer will need to write a new chapter in its public relations playbook.

You Don’t Need to Worry About Roundup in Your Breakfast Cereal

No one wants to eat Monsanto’s weed killer. But a new report dramatically exaggerates the danger of the trace amounts detected.

Roundup Hysteria

Misinformation about one of the safest herbicides ever produced has created a lucrative business for ambulance-chasing lawyers and NGOs—at the expense of native species.