carcinogen

The most widely used herbicide in the world, glyphosate, faces hundreds of legal challenges from cancer victims, primarlly agricultural and landscape workers, who blame the chemical for their illnesses, says the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Attorney Tim Litzenburg says the total could run into the thousands in the next two months because the statute of limitations is running out in many states.

The world's largest seed company, Monsanto, says it will challenge a ruling by a federal judge that allows California officials to require a cancer warning on its weedkiller Roundup, said The Associated Press. If carried out, it would be the first such state-level warning on the herbicide, made with glyphosate, the most widely used weedkiller in the world.

The maker of Nutella says the hazelnut spread would never be as good without palm oil, reports Reuters. The Italian company, Ferrero, defended the oil after a European Food Safety Authority report suggested that it is potentially carcinogenic when heated above 390 degrees Fahrenheit. The oil is regularly heated to high temperatures in industry manufacturing to remove its red color and odor.

After a four-day meeting, members of a Scientific Advisory Panel were divided over the EPA's conclusion, issued in a September 2016 white paper, that glyphosate, the world's most widely used herbicide, is "not likely to be carcinogenic to humans," Agri-Pulse reported.

Five weeks after the Canadian meat industry suggested the government should withdraw support from the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the Health Ministry has its answer: No, thank you. As iPolitics reports: "No adjustments to their support would be necessary at this time," said a spokesman for Minister Jean Philpott.

The FDA found trace amounts of glyphosate, the most widely used weedkiller in the world, "in a variety of oat products, including plain and flavored oat cereals for babies," says a blog post by Carey Gillam of U.S. Right to Know. It appeared a day after European officials said they would release data from their assessment that glyphosate is "unlikely to pose a carcinogenic risk to humans" and two days after a Monsanto-commissioned study said the herbicide was not a threat.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer, which ignited a global debate by rating glyphosate as probably carcinogenic to humans, has advised experts not to release documents requested under U.S. public records laws, said Reuters. In a letter and an email, IARC says it is "the sole owner of such materials" and "IARC requests you and your institute not to release any (such) documents," reports the news agency.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer started a global debate by rating glyphosate, the most widely used weedkiller in the world, as "probably carcinogenic to humans" while the EPA says its studies indicate it is "not likely to be carcinogenic to humans at doses relevant to human health." Harvest Public Media says the difference in view is partially explained by the way the agencies chose to evaluate the issue.

The European Commission’s plan to temporarily extend the glyphosate sales license was thwarted Monday when France, Germany, and Italy abstained from voting on the proposal, leaving the commission short of the requisite population threshold for approval, reports the Wall Street Journal.

Because member states disagree, the European Commission, the administrative arm of the EU, will ask for a short-term extension of the license allowing the use of glyphosate while safety studies of the weedkiller are completed, said Health Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis.