The pharmaceutical and agrochemical group Bayer is fighting on various fronts for its herbicidal active ingredient glyphosate: In the United States in court and in the European Union at the political level, where the issue of re-approval of the herbicide is at stake.

The Dax group has now received support in its argumentation that the agent is not carcinogenic from a study commissioned by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).

This is basically the point of contention that is important both in the legal dispute and in the risk assessment for re-approval.

Jonas Jansen

Business correspondent in Düsseldorf.

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    The inspection authorities in France, the Netherlands, Sweden and Hungary concluded in their investigation that "glyphosate meets the approval criteria for human health".

    The agent neither damages the genetic material nor is it carcinogenic.

    There is no risk to consumers when used properly, which is the result of thousands of studies, statistical analyzes and animal experiments, said the rapporteurs in their assessment report.

    Farmers in America

    When asked, Bayer welcomed the results of the report, saying it confirms "the conclusions of leading health authorities," said a spokesman. Gyphosate-based products did not pose a risk to human health. Nevertheless, the report is only a first, small intermediate step in the process: After it was sent to EFSA on Wednesday, the agency will publish its assessment by probably September.

    Not only can the member states and applicants, including Bayer, other manufacturers of glyphosate products such as the Swiss chemical company Syngenta, make their comments, but also the public, such as non-governmental and environmental organizations. A final recommendation from EFSA is not expected until the second half of 2022. At the end of 2017, the EU Commission extended the approval of glyphosate by five years and now has to make a new decision.

    However, some EU member states are going their own way: the National Council in Austria recently passed a partial ban on the use of glyphosate, but exempted agriculture from it. This is where the product is mainly used. In Germany, the use of pesticides is initially to be restricted and completely banned by the end of 2023.

    The home market is not particularly important for Bayer's glyphosate sales; the main buyers are farmers in the United States and in Central and South America, especially in Mexico and Brazil. However, Bayer is fighting for the product's reputation, although country bans do not help the company. Especially when it comes to the legal dispute: In America, since the 63 billion dollar takeover of Monsanto, the Leverkusen-based company has now faced more than 96,000 plaintiffs who state that they have cancer because of glyphosate. A billion dollar comparison has recently stalled.