The controversial weed killer known as glyphosate is receiving one more year of unrestricted use on the European market.

The European Commission has decided that the extension of the temporary approval of glyphosate will remain in force until 15 December 2023, DPA reported, citing a spokesperson for the European Commission.

The decision has not yet been formally taken, but this will happen by 15 December 2022, when the previous approval for glyphosate in the EU expires.

Many EU countries do not agree with the extension

According to the Commission, it was legally obliged to extend the approval, even in the face of opposition from most EU Member States. Additional time is still needed for the competent EU authority to examine all the necessary information and assess the safety of the plant protection product. This will be followed by procedures for a long-term decision on the fate of glyphosate.

In Germany, the use of the herbicide will be discontinued from the beginning of 2024. In other Member States of the Union, the so-called partial ban is in force. For example, in Austria the National Council unanimously adopted a partial ban on glyphosate in May last year. This means that the chemical substance may not be used in places such as children’s playgrounds, parks, care facilities for the elderly, healthcare facilities, private homes and small garden areas.

Nevertheless, it remains authorised in agriculture, where it is the most widely used herbicide.

Glyphosate – officially on the European market for another 5 years

Glyphosate – the weed killer

Introduced by the American seed company Monsanto in the 1970s, glyphosate is one of the most widely used weed destroyers and is now sold by many companies. Monsanto is now part of the German agrochemical and pharmaceutical group Bayer. Glyphosate has been criticised primarily for allegedly causing cancer, but the manufacturer Bayer categorically rejects this. The use of glyphosate has been the subject of controversy for quite some time. The authorisation of the herbicide was approved for use in the EU for another five years in 2017, after it was not definitively proven that it harms human health.