Dive Brief:
- Two nonprofits released a report Monday that found many U.S. food products contained higher-than-expected amounts of glyphosate residue. The groups are now demanding corporate and regulatory action to protect consumer health, EcoWatch reported.
- Food Democracy Now and The Detox Project found glyphosate residues in cookies, crackers, popular cereals and chips that both children and adults regularly consume.
- The nonprofits performed the testing at FDA-registered lab facility Anresco using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, widely regarded as the scientific standard for detecting glyphosate residues.
Dive Insight:
Just last week, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced it has put its government testing for glyphosate residues on hiatus, Food Safety Magazine reported. The agency began glyphosate testing in February but reported challenges in determining a standard methodology that it could implement across all of its U.S. laboratories. The agency was also struggling with lab equipment and needed more sensitive instruments.
But given the findings from this report and others, now doesn't seem to be the best time for the FDA to cease its glyphosate testing. Earlier this year, the FDA itself reported finding glyphosate residues in honey samples that were twice the amount permitted in the European Union. The agency also found the herbicide's residues in instant oatmeal cereals and foods that weren't treated with the chemical.
Glyphosate, the most commonly used herbicide worldwide and a key component in Monsanto's Roundup weed killer, has received more attention since the World Health Organization classified glyphosate as a probable carcinogen last year. The Environmental Protection Agency is currently performing a risk assessment to identify whether the government will mandate limitations on glyphosate use and residues in food and beverage products. Initially, the EPA concluded that glyphosate is not carcinogenic, but third-party scientists still needed to review the findings.