<
https://theconversation.com/nzs-approval-of-roundup-relies-on-industry-funded-reviews-currently-under-investigation-286333>
"Last month’s US Supreme Court ruling in favour of the makers of the weedkiller
Roundup (formerly Monsanto, now owned by German pharmaceuticals group Bayer)
upended thousands of lawsuits based on the cancer risk associated with the
product’s active ingredient glyphosate.
But the ruling also highlights a longstanding controversy about how the
product’s use is approved, including in New Zealand.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has judged glyphosate “not likely”
to cause cancer, while the World Health Organization’s International Agency for
Research on Cancer (IARC) describes it as “probably carcinogenic to humans”.
The two agencies weigh the evidence differently. IARC uses only publicly
available studies and tests animal data for dose-response trends, while the US
EPA leans heavily on unpublished studies commissioned by the manufacturer
itself.
As a small country, New Zealand cannot itself conduct full risk assessments of
thousands of chemicals in use, and leans on findings from bigger agencies
overseas.
In the case of glyphosate, New Zealand’s approval process is based on several
reviews shaped by Monsanto. But I argue this is no longer tenable, as one of
them has now been retracted and two are under investigation."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
