On Friday 20 March, the World Health Organisation stated that the world’s most widely-used weed killer can “probably” cause cancer. The WHO\u2019s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) said that glyphosate was “classified as probably carcinogenic to humans.”<\/p>\n
Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Monsanto\u2019s Roundup herbicide. By Monday, Monsanto’s shares had fallen by 2%.<\/p>\n
It was no surprise then that the work of WHO cancer specialists from 11 countries was speedily dismissed by Monsanto. In a press release<\/a>, the company argued the findings are based on \u2018junk\u2019 science and cherry picking and are agenda driven.<\/p>\n Philip Miller, Monsanto’s vice-president of global regulatory affairs, said:<\/p>\n “We don’t know how IARC could reach a conclusion that is such a dramatic departure from the conclusion reached by all regulatory agencies around the globe.”<\/p>\n It’s not so dramatic given that the sanctioning and testing of glyphosate for commercial use has been a seriously flawed affair due to the actions of and conflicts of interest within various regulatory agencies (for example, see this<\/a>,this<\/a>, this<\/a> and this<\/a>). Moreover,\u00a0Monsanto itself knows a thing or two about junk science, cherry picking and biased agendas<\/a>\u00a0being a long-time exponent of such things.<\/p>\n Glyphosate is widely used on crops and has been detected in food, water and in the air after it has been sprayed.\u00a0Its use has previously been strongly associated with various diseases (see this<\/a>\u00a0and this<\/a>).\u00a0The evidence for the WHO’s conclusion is derived from studies in the US, Canada, and Sweden that have been published since 2001.<\/p>\n To coincide with the IARC\u2019s findings, public promoter of GM golden rice Patrick Moore recently said during an interview on French TV that:<\/p>\n \u201cI do not believe that glyphosate in Argentina is causing cancer. You can drink a whole quart and it won\u2019t hurt\u00a0you.\u201d<\/p>\n (See\u00a0here<\/a> for information about glyphosate use and cancer rates in Argentina).<\/p>\n The interviewer asks if he would like to drink it because he has some available.<\/p>\n Moore:\u00a0\u201cI\u2019d be happy to\u2026 not really. I know it wouldn\u2019t hurt me.\u201d<\/p>\n The interviewer again challenges Moore to drink some.<\/p>\n Moore:\u00a0\u201cNo. I\u2019m not stupid\u2026 People try to commit suicide with it and fail fairly regularly.\u201d<\/p>\n The interviewer urges Moore to tell the truth.<\/p>\n Moore: \u201cNo, It\u2019s not dangerous to humans.\u201d<\/p>\n Interviewer: \u201cSo are you ready to drink one glass of glyphosate?\u201d<\/p>\n Moore: \u201cNo, I\u2019m not an idiot\u2026 Interview me about golden rice\u2026 then the interview is finished\u2026 you\u2019re a complete jerk.\u201d<\/p>\n Then Moore storms out.<\/p>\n And the lesson is: do not make baseless statements.<\/p>\n Perhaps Monsanto could learn a thing or two from Moore’s interview.<\/p>\n Watch Moore\u2019s foot-in-mouth interview here:\u00a0http:\/\/www.canalplus.fr\/c-infos-documentaires\/pid3357-c-special-investigation.html?vid=1122650&sc_cmpid=TWShareInfo<\/a><\/p>\n