Urgent – to the Attention of the EU Commission – President Juncker, Mr. Andriukaitis, Mr. Hogan, Karmenu Vella via https://www.facebook.com/CommissionerVella, Mrs. Malström the Governments and Ministries of Agriculture of the EU Member Countries and the Members of the European Parliament
URGENT – GLYPHOSATE – U.S. COURT SETTLEMENTS AND DECISIONS – U.S. DEPT OF THE INTERIOR/U.S. FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE TO ANALYZE THE IMPACT OF GLYPHOSATE AND ATRAZINE ON 1,500 ENDANGERED SPECIES – EPA (ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY) FORCED TO BEGIN TO ANALYZE THE HARMS FROM ATRAZINE AND GLYPHOSATE RESULTS BY JUNE 2020 – THE FDA (U.S. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION) WILL FINALLY NEED TO START ROUTINE TESTING FOR GLYPHOSATE RESIDUES IN FOOD
Dear Representatives,
With the recent U.S. court settlements and decisions forcing The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Enviromental Protection Agency by 2020 and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on a permanent basis to evaluate, determine and routinely control the harm and impact of glyphosate and other chemicals in the natural environment and in residues in food products it is inevitable that the EU Commission and the European member countries retrieve any decisions on the re-registration of glyphosate and the already granted resp intended permissions to plant GMO crops within the territory of the European Union based on the Lisbon Treaty’s article on Good Governance and the precautionary principle (EU Regulation (EC) No. 178/2002 and the already abundantly available evidence; please see below references which are self-explanatory. Any failure to do so must be considered plain recklessness and constitutes gross negligence towards the current citizens of the European Union and their future generations.
The use of glyphosate, glyphosate based herbicides (combinations) and the harm of glyphosate tolerant GMO crops in our food products has not been examined and evaluated by the FDA or any other state authority in the past 20 years. Strictly legally speaking these products have no valid registration or permission to be on the market. It is time to have independent toxicologists look into the matter.
Respectfully,
Lisa Boldizsar
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/-2016/pesticides-02-19-2016.html
Historic Settlement: Wildlife Agency Will Finally Examine How Roundup, Atrazine Harm 1,500 Endangered Species – Harms Caused by Atrazine, Roundup Will Be Fully Assessed, Mitigated
WASHINGTON— 19 February 2016 – The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will analyze the impacts of atrazine and glyphosate — the two most commonly used pesticides in the United States — on 1,500 endangered U.S. plants and animals under the terms of a historic settlement reached today with the Center for Biological Diversity. The agreement ensures that the Fish and Wildlife Service will develop conservation measures on these two pesticides, along with propazine and simazine, which together represent nearly 40 percent of annual pesticide use in the United States. (http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/pesticides_reduction/pdfs/Pesticides-Settlement_2_19_2016.pdf)
“This agreement will result in long-overdue protections for our country’s most endangered species,” said Brett Hartl, endangered species policy director at the Center. “Once the Fish and Wildlife Service completes its analysis, and the public finally learns just how toxic and deadly these pesticides are to endangered species, we hope that the government will ultimately take most of these products off the shelf.”
Despite a clear legal requirement to consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service on the impacts from pesticides on endangered species, the Environmental Protection Agency has repeatedly failed to do so when it registers a pesticide under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act. A series of lawsuits by the Center has forced the EPA to begin consulting on the impacts of pesticides, including an agreement reached last summer for EPA to begin the process to analyze the harms from atrazine and glyphosate by June 2020.
Today’s settlement follows a similar framework and requires the Fish and Wildlife Service to finish the consultation process on these chemicals by December 2022. The analysis is likely to lead to permanent restrictions on some of the most harmful uses of these highly toxic pesticides.
“With more than 300 million pounds of Roundup and 80 million pounds of atrazine being dumped on the landscape each year, it’s hard to even fathom the damage being done to endangered species, our environment and our own health,” said Hartl. “The analysis required under the Endangered Species Act is our best bet for forcing the EPA to stop acting as a rubber stamp for industry, and to finally make environmental protection the highest priority in decisions about these dangerous pesticides.”
Glyphosate has also been linked to the decline of many wildlife species, including monarch butterflies. The increase in use within the United States has come with the widespread adoption of herbicide-tolerant, genetically engineered crops such as corn and soy. The World Health Organization recently declared glyphosate a probable human carcinogen, and just last week, the Food and Drug Administration announced that it would begin testing for glyphosate in food.
In addition to causing severe harm to endangered species, atrazine exposure may be linked to increased risks of thyroid cancer, reproductive harm and birth defects in people. A 2013 study showed that children whose mothers were exposed to atrazine had an increased risk of birth defects. Atrazine is the second-most commonly used pesticide after glyphosate, more commonly known as Monsanto’s Roundup.
“Government agencies have a legal and moral duty to ensure that harmful chemicals aren’t sprayed in the same places where vulnerable wild animals are trying to survive,” said Hartl. “Pesticides found in endangered species habitat can also contaminate our drinking water, food, homes and schools, where they pose a disturbing health risk.”
The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 990,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places. ______________________________________________________________
http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2016/glyphosate-02-17-2016.html
FDA to Begin Testing for Pesticide Glyphosate, Probable Human Carcinogen, in Food
PORTLAND, Ore.— 17 February 2016 – The Food and Drug Administration will finally begin testing food for glyphosate, the world’s most commonly used pesticide, according to Civil Eats. This marks the first time that a U.S. agency will routinely test for glyphosate residue in food. It comes after the Government Accountability Office released a report condemning the FDA for failing even to disclose its failure to test for glyphosate in its annual pesticide residue report.
The World Health Organization found that glyphosate, commonly known as Roundup, was a probable human carcinogen, and glyphosate has been named as a leading cause of massive declines in monarch butterflies.
“In the wake of intense scrutiny, the Food and Drug Administration has finally committed to taking this basic step of testing our food for the most commonly used pesticide. It’s shocking that it’s taken so long, but we’re glad it’s finally going to happen,” said Dr. Nathan Donley, a scientist with the Center for Biological Diversity. “More and more scientists are raising concerns about the effects of glyphosate on human health and the environment. With about 1.7 billion pounds of this pesticide used each year worldwide, the FDA’s data is badly needed to facilitate long-overdue conversations about how much of this chemical we should tolerate in our food.”
Leading scientists published an article about the exploding use of glyphosate around the world in today’s issue of the journal Environmental Health. Pointing to concerns over rapidly increasing use, outdated science and the WHO’s finding, the authors called on regulatory agencies to take a fresh look at the real-world impacts of glyphosate and to start monitoring its levels in people and in food.
“The alarm bell is ringing loud and clear. The current cavalier use of glyphosate, and lax regulation, cannot remain in place,” said Donley. “It’s long past time to start reining in the out-of-control use of this dangerous pesticide in the United States and around the world.”
Just last week 35 members of the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy expressing concerns regarding the potential negative health and environmental impacts of a pesticide, Enlist Duo, that combines glyphosate and 2,4-D. EPA is currently reanalyzing its decision to register the dangerous pesticide following a remand order from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Monsanto is also now embroiled in a legal battle with the state of California over the state’s move to list glyphosate as a carcinogen under Proposition 65 law. As the legal battle plays out California, a new report from the Center found that more than half of the glyphosate sprayed in the state was applied in the state’s eight most impoverished counties.
The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 990,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.
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http://ehjournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12940-016-0117-0
Concerns over use of glyphosate-based herbicides and risks associated with exposures: a consensus statement
- John Peterson Myers1, 13Email author, Affiliated with Michael N. Antoniou2, Affiliated with Bruce Blumberg3, Affiliated with Lynn Carroll4, Affiliated with Theo Colborn4, Affiliated with Lorne G. Everett5, Affiliated with Michael Hansen6, Affiliated with Philip J. Landrigan7, Affiliated with Bruce P. Lanphear8, Affiliated with Robin Mesnage2, Affiliated with Laura N. Vandenberg9, Affiliated with Frederick S. vom Saal10, Affiliated with Wade V. Welshons11 and Affiliated with Charles M. Benbrook12Email author
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Affiliated with Environmental Health201615:19
DOI: 10.1186/s12940-016-0117-0 © Myers et al. 2016 – Received: 8 June 2015 Accepted: 6 February 2016 Published: 17 February 2016
Abstract
The broad-spectrum herbicide glyphosate (common trade name “Roundup”) was first sold to farmers in 1974. Since the late 1970s, the volume of glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs) applied has increased approximately 100-fold. Further increases in the volume applied are likely due to more and higher rates of application in response to the widespread emergence of glyphosate-resistant weeds and new, pre-harvest, dessicant use patterns. GBHs were developed to replace or reduce reliance on herbicides causing well-documented problems associated with drift and crop damage, slipping efficacy, and human health risks. Initial industry toxicity testing suggested that GBHs posed relatively low risks to non-target species, including mammals, leading regulatory authorities worldwide to set high acceptable exposure limits. To accommodate changes in GBH use patterns associated with genetically engineered, herbicide-tolerant crops, regulators have dramatically increased tolerance levels in maize, oilseed (soybeans and canola), and alfalfa crops and related livestock feeds. Animal and epidemiology studies published in the last decade, however, point to the need for a fresh look at glyphosate toxicity. Furthermore, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer recently concluded that glyphosate is “probably carcinogenic to humans.” In response to changing GBH use patterns and advances in scientific understanding of their potential hazards, we have produced a Statement of Concern drawing on emerging science relevant to the safety of GBHs. Our Statement of Concern considers current published literature describing GBH uses, mechanisms of action, toxicity in laboratory animals, and epidemiological studies. It also examines the derivation of current human safety standards. We conclude that: (1) GBHs are the most heavily applied herbicide in the world and usage continues to rise; (2) Worldwide, GBHs often contaminate drinking water sources, precipitation, and air, especially in agricultural regions; (3) The half-life of glyphosate in water and soil is longer than previously recognized; (4) Glyphosate and its metabolites are widely present in the global soybean supply; (5) Human exposures to GBHs are rising; (6) Glyphosate is now authoritatively classified as a probable human carcinogen; (7) Regulatory estimates of tolerable daily intakes for glyphosate in the United States and European Union are based on outdated science. We offer a series of recommendations related to the need for new investments in epidemiological studies, biomonitoring, and toxicology studies that draw on the principles of endocrinology to determine whether the effects of GBHs are due to endocrine disrupting activities. We suggest that common commercial formulations of GBHs should be prioritized for inclusion in government-led toxicology testing programs such as the U.S. National Toxicology Program, as well as for biomonitoring as conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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the corn variety MON810 Monsanto is the only transgenic plant, which has been approved for cultivation in the EU. MON810 is grown on more than 100,000 hectares in Spain. The authorisation granted in the year 1998 significantly depended on the assumption that corn in Europe has no possibility to exchange its genes with wild Cousins.
These conditions have changed now however: teosinte, which considered the origin plant of the corn and occurs in Mexico, spreading since 2009 in Spain as an invasive species. Where plants come from, is not known. It is but very well known that teosinte and maize can intersect and form common offspring. Thus there might be MON810 also gene transfer between teosinte and the GMO corn, making transgenic maize could establish themselves permanently in the environment.
With the proliferation of teosinte, the authorisation for the cultivation of MON810 would thus lose their validity. A good reason for Monsanto to keep secret the spread: Although the Group legally is obliged to submit annual reports on the cultivation of GM maize in Spain and about possible environmental risks, Monsanto apparently reported nothing about the new invasive species to the Commission.
So the Commission is indeed completely uninformed: upon the request of a Spanish Member, it was said in the reply that „no data about the appearance of teosinte“ exist in November 2014. The plants are hard to miss: they grow much taller than corn and also have very different branches (image). In several regions of Spain is warned by the authorities long before the risk of a further spread.
Testbiotech has now jointly with other organizations contacted the Commission and requires that cultivation is stopped by maize MON810. www.testbiotech.org/node/1562
However, there is not much reason to hope that the European Commission is acting rapidly. More and more, we have the impression that the EU Commissioner, Vytenis Andriukaitis, has lost sight of the risks and that the EU Commission is rather engaged in the interests of the industry than for the environment’s and consumers safety.
Also in the European Parliament, the dissatisfaction with the genetic engineering policies of the EU Commission rises: beginning of February 2016 the Parliament adopted a resolution that the planned import approvals for transgenic soybeans should be stopped. Glyphosate and other herbicides used in these soy plants as sprays, which are considered to be particularly toxic in combination. Already over 1000 emails to Jean-Claude Juncker were sent within our Testbiotech action „To stop the poison soy“ – Please help us to build more public pressure. www.testbiotech.org/aktion_gift_soja.
We demand to stop the EU-approved genetically modified soy beans of the company Bayer and Monsanto, which can be sprayed with the herbicide glyphosate in combination with dicamba or Isoxaflutole (MON87708 x MON89788 and FG72).
According to a recently published opinion, residues, derived from the combined application of these pesticides, exhibit an increased risk to change the genetic material and to trigger the liver poisoning and tumours. Consumers as well as farm animals can be exposed to the combination of this toxic residues. It is expected that these exist also in the harvesting of GM soya, which should be imported into the EU. These risks have so far not been investigated however.
The EU Commission noted in a letter to Testbiotech by January 2016: „It is right that the laws require that cumulative and synergistic effects of pesticides are assessed.“ But, at the same time maintains that there is currently no adequate methods to assess these risks.
If the EU Commission and the European food safety authority EFSA unable to assess the health risks of these toxic compounds, the marketing authorisation must be stopped. The directives require the highest standards for the protection of the environment and consumers. In the case of genetically modified soy beans, the precautionary principle must therefore will be implemented, and the registration must be stopped.
More information: http://www.testbiotech.org/en/node/1549
STUDY OF SAMSEL UND SENEFF (2015) WHICH MADE MONSANTO’S FRAUD PUBLIC
http://www.renewablefarming.com/images/2015Images/2015PDF/Glyphosate-pathways-modern-diseases.pdf
THE MOST DETAILED AND COMPREHENSIVE REPORT ON HEALTH RELATED HAZARDS
IF THEIR HONEY BE CONTAMINATED WITH GMO POLLEN FORM MONSANTO CROPS THEY WOULD NEED PERMISSION TO SELL THEIR OWN PRODUCT – see related Judgement below
http://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2011-09/cp110079en.pdf –
COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION – Press release No 70/11 – Luxembourg, 6 September 2011 – JUDGEMENT IN CASE C-442/09 – Karl Heinz Bablok and Others v Freistaat Bayern – HONEY AND FOOD SUPPLEMENTS CONTAINING POLLEN DERIVED FROM GMO ARE FOODSTUFFS PRODUCED FROM GMOs WHICH CANNOT BE MARKETED WITHOUT PRIOR AUTHORISATION
http://salsa3.salsalabs.com/o/1881/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=17694 –
U.S. CENTER FOR FOOD SAFETY – TELL MARS TO GIVE US TREATS NOT TRICKS
http://www.umweltinstitut.org/themen/landwirtschaft/pestizide/glyphosat.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ivpJx3gkMY – Video in German – CHRONIC POISONING – THE MALFORMATION AND DEATH OF FARM ANIMALS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4uUx507ZZU – VIDEO GERMANY – Glyphosate – farm animals and farmers getting seriously sick
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D1VWcSaUiHo – ARGENTINE – TABAK – malformations, mentally and physically redarted children, pregnant women losing their children
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWMdFfH1LRQ – DENMARK and Germany – Glyphosate – Malformation and death in piglets
EAPANE 