RNZ reported last month that ACC had accepted 359 claims for injuries involving Roundup since 1990 and a further 20 where its active ingredient glyphosate was named. File photo Photo: 123RF
An environmental group is at loggerheads with the country's herbicides regulator over its insistence that the popular weedkiller Roundup and its active ingredient glyphosate are "not banned in any major regulatory jurisdiction".
RNZ reported last month that the Accident Compensation Corporation had accepted 359 claims for injuries involving Roundup since 1990 and a further 20 where its active ingredient glyphosate was named.
The herbicide topped the lists of successful ACC claims for injuries related to herbicides, pesticides and insecticides.
Some studies have linked the weedkiller and its active ingredient to cancer, but Environmental Protection Authority General Manager Hazardous Substances and New Organisms, Dr Chris Hill, said specific carcinogenicity studies had not confirmed a link between cancer and glyphosate.
He spelt out to RNZ what a ban entailed as far as the EPA was concerned.
"A ban would be where an active ingredient is completely withdrawn from the market within a country.
"Individual countries may place specific restrictions or controls around an active ingredient's use, similar to the rules we have put in place around the required personal protective equipment for glyphosate."
Environmental Law Initiative (ELI) senior legal advisor Tess Upperton said that did not tell the full story.
"Glyphosate is banned outright by some countries including Vietnam, Fiji, and Qatar. Other countries, such as Mexico, have made a commitment to work towards a ban."
Jurisdictions including France, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, and various provinces in Canada, had partial bans that prohibit domestic use and/or the use of glyphosate in public places such as parks, Upperton said.
"Austria tried to implement a complete ban on glyphosate in 2019 and Germany did the same in 2021. These had to be partially rolled back due to inconsistency with the EU's approvals of glyphosate."
Upperton said the ELI took issue with the EPA's stance on glyphosate because it was the most widely used herbicide in Aotearoa and the authority had never done a full risk assessment of it.
"Some people are out there spraying it like it is water, yet it is a hazardous substance that can cause burns and is a probable carcinogen."
Upperton said a full assessment would be an opportunity for the EPA to consider the true costs and benefits of glysophate's use in Aotearoa, and how best to regulate it to protect the environment and health and safety of people.
ELI's own enquiries with ACC revealed the state-run insurer had received 13 claims in the last six years requesting cover for cancer due to herbicide or pesticide exposure.
"Of those claims, seven related to glyphosate or glyphosate-containing herbicides."
ACC accepted two of the claims linking the use of glyphosate to cancer, one after an independent review quashed an earlier decision to decline cover.
"These chemicals end up everywhere. The EPA should be making decisions based on a comprehensive understanding of how glyphosate and its co-formulants affect us here in Aotearoa," Upperton said.
There are around 90 glyphosate-based herbicides approved for use in Aotearoa with Roundup being the most recognised brand.
In 2024, the Environmental Law Initiative asked the EPA if legal grounds existed for the reassessment of glyphosate and glyphosate-based substances.
The EPA decided that grounds did not exist for reassessment a decision which ELI was challenging through the courts.
"We have some of the most unique biodiversity in the world. Yet the EPA does not know the impact of glyphosate on our native flora and fauna," Upperton said.
Glyphosate was first imported to Aotearoa in the 1970s, before the creation of the EPA and contemporary legislation regulating hazardous substances.
"That means we've been using glyphosate-based herbicides for over 50 years without a full understanding of their impact on our people, native species, land, water and ecosystems."
EPA response
EPA's Dr Chris Hill stood by its previous statement on restrictions on the use of glyphosate.
"Glyphosate has not been banned in any major comparable jurisdiction, including Australia, Canada, the EU, UK or US. Individual countries may place specific restrictions or controls around an active ingredient's use," he said.
"In New Zealand, there are rules that must be followed for glyphosate-containing substances. These are considered sufficient to manage risks associated with the use of glyphosate."
Dr Hill said the EPA continually monitored international developments and reviewed global research on hazardous substances, including glyphosate.
"In New Zealand all glyphosate-containing substances have been approved through various assessment pathways. We have no evidence that risks associated with using glyphosate, or its hazardous nature, have changed to warrant a reassessment. "
The EPA issued a call for information in 2021 on how glyphosate is used in New Zealand, and did not receive any information that would warrant change to the restrictions already in place for its use.
"In 2024 we received a request for grounds to reassess glyphosate and glyphosate-containing formulations. The EPA found that the information provided, as well as other existing information, was not significant enough to warrant grounds being granted, and declined the request."
Dr Hill said EPA continued to review new research on glyphosate that showed a change in the risks and was relevant to the New Zealand context.
Bayer responds
In a statement, German multinational company Bayer, which manufactures Roundup, said leading health regulators in Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Canada, Japan and elsewhere around the world had repeatedly concluded that glyphosate-based products could be used safely as directed and that glyphosate was not carcinogenic.
"Currently, while some countries have placed restrictions on the use of glyphosate, or are proposing such restrictions going forward, Togo is the only country in the world that has a country-wide ban on glyphosate. Moreover, many such restricted use requirements apply to all pesticides, not just glyphosate.
"No national regulator that has conducted its own assessment of the science has determined glyphosate to be a risk to human health. It seems therefore that any restrictions or bans in place are based on political or policy choices, not scientific assessments."
In 2023, the EU Commission re-approved glyphosate for 10 years, following scientific assessments by its health and safety agencies, which "did not identify any critical areas of concern" impacting public health or the environment in their review of glyphosate in July 2023, the statement said.
In December 2024, the Federal Court of Australia discontinued the final class action against Monsanto relating to Roundup, bringing to a close all cases relating to Roundup in Australia.
"Bayer fully stands behind its glyphosate-based products, which have been used safely and successfully around the world for 50 years. Roundup and glyphosate-based herbicides have been rigourously tested in hundreds of studies, with the weight of this extensive body of science confirming that glyphosate is safe when used as directed and is not carcinogenic."
The High Court judicial review of the EPA decision not to reassess glyphosate and glyphosate-based substances would be held from 16 to 17 June.
