Maintaining the ban on the use of glyphosate from April 1, 2024 could mean suicide for the agricultural sector. “This herbicide is an indispensable tool to increase production, reduce imports and advance food self-sufficiency that was lost in this administration in corn and beans.”
This was demanded by the leader of the Mexican Union of Agrochemical Manufacturers and Formulators (UMFFAAC), Luis Eduardo González Cepeda, who specified:
“The European Union, on November 16, approved its use for 10 more years after extensive evaluations on food and product safety. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) determined that glyphosate does not represent a risk to human health or the environment.”
Therefore, he called on authorities who oppose the use of glyphosate to present concrete evidence that supports the alleged health damage associated with the herbicide.
“That is, the importance of basing regulatory decisions on verifiable data and not on mere conjectures. The insistence of a radical group in the government on the ban of glyphosate lacks a solid scientific basis. It seems to obey more to an ideology than to a commitment to public health,” he pointed out.
And without scientific and reliable evidence of the alleged damage of the herbicide, the decree is unjustifiable and counterproductive for the country’s agricultural sector.
Three months before this presidential decree comes into force, the UMFFAAC, which groups industrialists in crop protection, demands that this provision be reversed, which would mean a mortal blow for Mexican agriculture.
González Cepeda highlighted in an interview that glyphosate prevents weeds from competing for nutrients and sunlight with crops; but especially for water, a resource that this year was significantly reduced due to the drought.
“And so far, there is no product that matches the herbicide in efficiency, cost, ease of handling, in addition to being highly safe,” he stated.
The specialist highlighted that “it is absurd to maintain the decree that prohibits glyphosate. He recalled that on November 16, the European Union approved the use of this herbicide for 10 more years, after extensive evaluations by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
And from the European Chemical Substances and Mixtures Agency (ECHA) regarding product safety. Both determined that glyphosate does not represent a risk to human health or the environment.
There is no effective alternative to glyphosate
He further noted: ”No viable, efficient, economical and effective alternative has been presented to replace glyphosate. “It cannot be prohibited on a whim and even less so in the situation we live in, where resources such as water are increasingly scarce.”
Engineer González Cepeda considered that there are several situations that would have to be analyzed in Mexico. “And you can take the example of what happened in Europe, to say: we have not found alternatives, we do not have a substitute product and the damage to health has not been demonstrated.”
“And, on the other hand, the need for farmers to control weeds is much greater than in Europe, because there is not enough machinery to remove weeds.”
Regarding the presidential decree, he highlighted that it should at least have an extension until the authorities show scientific evidence or a viable alternative of other products to replace glyphosate.
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Although, he said, the point is not to prohibit it, but to train producers on the use of this herbicide so that they respect the application amount described on the labeling and that there is no overuse of it.
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2024-01-03 18:34:00
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