Luxembourg, which in 2020 was the first EU country to ban glyphosate, announced on Monday April 3 that it was reauthorizing the marketing of products based on this controversial herbicide, a decision imposed by the Grand Duchy’s justice system.
The country of 645,000 inhabitants had withdrawn the 1er February 2020 marketing authorization for plant protection products based on glyphosate, while tolerating the disposal of existing stocks, before completely prohibiting their use on Luxembourg soil from 1er January 2021. But this ban was invalidated on Friday by a decision rendered on appeal by the Administrative Court of Luxembourg.
The judges pointed “the absence of indication of any legal argument” to ban the eight products concerned, in contradiction with the legal regime of the EU, which allowed their distribution.
“The Court confirmed that the withdrawal [des autorisations de marché] violated European law”welcomed the German chemical giant Bayer, which had filed an appeal before the administrative courts against the banning of its products, in particular its Roundup brand. “This withdrawal was not based on any scientific or regulatory element incriminating glyphosate or products based on this substance”reacted a spokesperson for the group to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
A scientific evaluation awaited
The European Commission decided at the beginning of December to extend by one year, until December 15, 2023, the current authorization of glyphosate in the EU, already renewed in 2017 for five years, pending an evaluation. science by European regulators.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) plans to deliver in July 2023 a long-awaited study on “the risks of exposure to glyphosate for animals, humans and the environment”considered essential to decide whether or not to extend, for another five years, the authorization issued to the herbicide.
The government of Luxembourg had banned glyphosate following a political agreement reached in 2018 by the ruling coalition, a first in the European Union. Austria had once planned to ban it from 2020, before backtracking.
The government of the Grand Duchy assured at the beginning of 2020 that nearly 60% of Luxembourg farms had already given up glyphosate, even before the ban was put in place.