The reregistration of glyphosate, better known by its trade name Roundup, has hit a stumbling block at EU level.

The scientific profile of the active is not in question but it has met with political disapproval due to uncertainly raised by suggestions from the WHO that it could potentially be carcinogenic. However, this is refuted by the EU’s Food Safety Authority.

There is little doubt that failure to authorise the use of glyphosate would impact heavily on farmers and consumers, who have increasingly come to rely on this active for a range of uses.

Glyphosate is almost universally used ahead of reseeding grassland and it is widely used in tillage farming.

IFA grain chair Liam Dunne said, “Failure to renew the authorisation of glyphosate will deliver a killer blow to tillage farming.” While other users might arguably manage without this active, the removal of glyphosate in the absence of alternative active ingredients to control economically important weeds, its loss will deliver a killer blow to the Irish and wider EU tillage sectors,” said Dunne.

“It is very clear that this issue is being used as a political football by a small number of vested interest groups to drive their own agenda.

“It remains essential that decisions to approve or not approve plant protection products are based on the best scientific evidence and not on political ideologies.

“Politics, rather than science, has been the main driver behind several important recent decisions taken in relation to crop production technologies.” Dunne said,

“Such an approach has the potential to destroy the EU crop production sector in the near to medium term,” he warned.