EPA Contradicts WHO, Declares Monsanto Roundup Chemical Safe
Jan. 3, 2018
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finds that glyphosate is not likely to harm humans.
The main chemical in Monsanto’s popular Roundup weed killer is not likely carcinogenic to humans, concludes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. According to an article from Reuters, the EPA finds that glyphosate, when used according to label instructions, poses “no other meaningful risks to human health.” The agency’s draft risk assessment report contradicts the claims of a World Health Organization (WHO) panel.
In 2015, WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) labelled the chemical, which has been widely used on crops, residential lawns and golf courses for more than 40 years, “probably carcinogenic.” The warning prompted California to add glyphosate to its list of cancer-causing chemicals and sparked a two-year debate in Europe over what to do regarding the chemical, according to Reuters. A recently published, long-term study, part of the Agricultural Health Study project, reportedly found no link between glyphosate exposure and cancer.
