Copa and Cogeca sent a letter to EU Commission President Juncker in Brussels this week urging the Commission to re-authorise the use of the herbicide active substance glyphosate in the EU for fifteen years, after the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) gave it a positive scientific assessment.
Copa and Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen stressed “Both ECHA and EFSA have issued opinions based on strong scientific evidence highlighting that there are no safety concerns regarding the use of glyphosate in crop production. We believe it is essential to respect these opinions and maintain trust in EFSA and the high standards that EU producers meet. Questioning EU science-based decision-making processes will only have an adverse impact on the credibility of the EU authorities and undermine our high safety standards”.
“Glyphosate is the most widely used herbicide in the EU, enabling us to produce safe, affordable, quality food. Its use is also important together with catch crops to prevent soil erosion and reduce greenhouse gas emissions”, he added.
Since there is no legitimate reason not to re-authorise it and since its withdrawal could have a negative impact on the environment and climate change, we urge the EU to re-authorise its use for fifteen years in accordance with EU legislation, he concluded.
