WASHINGTON (August 30, 2017) – Anne Kolton, Vice President of Communications of the American Chemistry Council (ACC) issued the following statement in response to France’s decision to vote against the European Commission’s proposal to renew the license for glyphosate.
“Public policy must be based on sound science – not inflammatory headlines. France’s latest decision to oppose the reauthorization of glyphosate goes against numerous government agencies around the world that conclude glyphosate is safe. It also ignores significant, demonstrated shortcomings that have been identified in the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC)’s flawed classification of glyphosate as a carcinogen.
“For years, IARC has prompted unwarranted regulatory actions and significant public confusion with hazard assessments that do not take into account exposure or real world scenarios, and do not reflect all relevant research. IARC lacks transparency, exhibits clear conflicts of interest, and as reported recently, omitted important data that demonstrates the safety of glyphosate from its recent review of the chemical.
“The safety of glyphosate is clear. Regulatory bodies from around the globe, including Europe’s chief scientific organizations, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and the Food Safety Agency (EFSA), conclude glyphosate is not a carcinogen. We urge France to reconsider its decision and to listen to the conclusions of these and other organizations. Countries and organizations from around the world are collectively calling for an investigation into IARC. It is clear that until fundamental reform is instituted, IARC should no longer be considered a credible scientific voice.”
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