No qualified majority reached by member states to renew or reject the approval of glyphosate

On 16 November, member states did not reach the required qualified majority to renew or reject the approval of glyphosate during a vote at the Appeal Committee. This follows a previous vote at the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (SCOPAFF) on 13 October, in which member states also did not reach the required majority to renew or reject the proposal.

In line with EU legislation and in the absence of the required majority in either direction, the Commission is now obliged to adopt a decision before 15 December 2023 when the current approval period expires.  The Commission, based on comprehensive safety assessments carried out by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), together with EU member states, will now proceed with the renewal of the approval of glyphosate for a period of 10 years, subject to certain new conditions and restrictions. These restrictions include a prohibition of pre-harvest use as a desiccant and the need for certain measures to protect non-target organisms.

Member States are responsible for national authorisation of plant protection products (PPPs) containing glyphosate and continue to be able to restrict their use at national and regional level if they consider this necessary based on the outcome of risk assessments, particularly factoring in the need to protect biodiversity.

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