False propaganda

Sir — This refers to the article, “Herbicides that weed out humans” (March 26) by Kota Sriraj. The article claims that Glyphosate has an adverse impact on health and the environment. As consumers ourselves, safety is a priority for every person who works at Monsanto. All labelled use of Glyphosate are safe for human health and supported by one of the most extensive worldwide human health databases ever compiled on an agricultural product. In fact, every Glyphosate-based herbicide in the market meets the rigorous standards set by health authorities.

We join fellow members of both the European Union and US Glyphosate taskforces in our disagreement with the International Agency on Research on Cancer classification for several reasons:

• There is no new research or data here. Each of the studies considered by IARC have been previously reviewed and considered by regulatory agencies — most recently by the German Government on behalf of the EU. 
• Relevant, scientific data was excluded from review. IARC received and purposefully disregarded dozens of scientific studies — specifically genetic toxicity studies — that support the  conclusion Glyphosate is not  a human health risk. 
• The conclusion is not supported by scientific data. IARC classification is in consistent with the numerous multi-year, comprehensive assessments conducted by hundreds of scientists from countries worldwide who are responsible for ensuring public safety.
• IARC’s classification does not establish a link between Glyphosate and an increase in cancer. It’s important to put IARC’s classifications into perspective. It has classified numerous everyday items in Category Two, including coffee, cell phones, and aloe vera extract.

Conclusions about a matter as important as human safety must be non-biased, thorough and based on quality science that adheres to internationally recognised standards. We view the IARC’s process and its assessment with strong scepticism.