Glyphosate: The World's Most Widely Used Herbicide

Glyphosate — scientific infographic poster

Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum systemic herbicide, and published reviews describe it as the most widely used herbicide in the world. It was introduced commercially in 1974. A 2016 analysis of use data estimated that 8.6 billion kilograms had been applied worldwide by 2014, about 1.6 billion kilograms of it in the United States, and that global use rose almost 15-fold after genetically engineered glyphosate-tolerant crops were introduced in 1996 (Benbrook 2016). Its safety is contested: the World Health Organization's cancer agency (IARC) classified it as "probably carcinogenic to humans" in 2015, while the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and European regulators concluded that it is not likely to be, or unlikely to be, a human carcinogen. This page sets out what each agency and the main studies report, including where they disagree.

Table of Contents

  1. Key Findings at a Glance
  2. History and Scale of Use
  3. Cancer Classifications: IARC, EPA, EFSA
  4. Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Lawsuits
  5. Gut Microbiome Research
  6. Where Glyphosate Is Found
  7. Glyphosate-Tolerant Crops and Resistant Weeds
  8. Bans and Restrictions
  9. Mineral Chelation Claims
  10. The Seralini Study and Scientific Controversy
  11. Endocrine and Formulation Research
  12. What Studies Report About Differences in Exposure
  13. Key Research Papers
  14. Connections
  15. Featured Videos

Key Findings at a Glance

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History and Scale of Use

Cancer Classifications: IARC, EPA, EFSA

Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Lawsuits

Gut Microbiome Research

Where Glyphosate Is Found

Glyphosate-Tolerant Crops and Resistant Weeds

Bans and Restrictions

Mineral Chelation Claims

The Seralini Study and Scientific Controversy

Endocrine and Formulation Research

What Studies Report About Differences in Exposure

Key Research Papers

Key peer-reviewed research and authoritative sources underpinning the claims on this page. Links resolve to DOI, PubMed, or the issuing agency.

  1. International Agency for Research on Cancer. Some Organophosphate Insecticides and Herbicides (includes glyphosate, evaluated March 2015). IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans, Vol. 112. Lyon: IARC; 2017. publications.iarc.fr
  2. Zhang L, Rana I, Shaffer RM, Taioli E, Sheppard L. Exposure to glyphosate-based herbicides and risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma: a meta-analysis and supporting evidence. Mutat Res Rev Mutat Res. 2019;781:186-206. — doi:10.1016/j.mrrev.2019.02.001
  3. Myers JP, Antoniou MN, Blumberg B, et al. Concerns over use of glyphosate-based herbicides and risks associated with exposures: a consensus statement. Environ Health. 2016;15:19. — doi:10.1186/s12940-016-0117-0
  4. Mesnage R, Defarge N, Spiroux de Vendomois J, Seralini GE. Potential toxic effects of glyphosate and its commercial formulations below regulatory limits. Food Chem Toxicol. 2015;84:133-153. — doi:10.1016/j.fct.2015.08.012
  5. Samsel A, Seneff S. Glyphosate's suppression of cytochrome P450 enzymes and amino acid biosynthesis by the gut microbiome: pathways to modern diseases. Entropy. 2013;15(4):1416-1463. — doi:10.3390/e15041416
  6. Kubsad D, Nilsson EE, King SE, Sadler-Riggleman I, Beck D, Skinner MK. Assessment of glyphosate induced epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of pathologies and sperm epimutations. Sci Rep. 2019;9:6372. — doi:10.1038/s41598-019-42860-0
  7. Seralini GE, Clair E, Mesnage R, et al. Long term toxicity of a Roundup herbicide and a Roundup-tolerant genetically modified maize. Food Chem Toxicol. 2012;50(11):4221-4231. — doi:10.1016/j.fct.2012.08.005 — Retracted (retraction notice: PubMed PMID: 24490213); republished 2014: doi:10.1186/s12302-014-0014-5
  8. Seralini GE, Clair E, Mesnage R, et al. Republished study: long-term toxicity of a Roundup herbicide and a Roundup-tolerant genetically modified maize. Environ Sci Eur. 2014;26:14. — doi:10.1186/s12302-014-0014-5
  9. Mesnage R, Antoniou MN. Ignoring adjuvant toxicity falsifies the safety profile of commercial pesticides. Front Public Health. 2018;5:361. — doi:10.3389/fpubh.2017.00361
  10. Benbrook CM. Trends in glyphosate herbicide use in the United States and globally. Environ Sci Eur. 2016;28:3. — doi:10.1186/s12302-016-0070-0
  11. Thongprakaisang S, Thiantanawat A, Rangkadilok N, Suriyo T, Satayavivad J. Glyphosate induces human breast cancer cells growth via estrogen receptors. Food Chem Toxicol. 2013;59:129-136. — doi:10.1016/j.fct.2013.05.057
  12. Van Bruggen AHC, He MM, Shin K, et al. Environmental and health effects of the herbicide glyphosate. Sci Total Environ. 2018;616-617:255-268. — doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.10.309
  13. Guyton KZ, Loomis D, Grosse Y, et al. Carcinogenicity of tetrachlorvinphos, parathion, malathion, diazinon, and glyphosate. Lancet Oncol. 2015;16(5):490-491. — PubMed PMID: 25801782
  14. International Agency for Research on Cancer. Q&A on Glyphosate. Lyon: IARC; 1 March 2016. — iarc.who.int
  15. Andreotti G, Koutros S, Hofmann JN, et al. Glyphosate use and cancer incidence in the Agricultural Health Study. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2018;110(5):509-516. — PubMed PMID: 29136183
  16. US Environmental Protection Agency. Glyphosate (registration review timeline, cancer conclusion, interim decision withdrawal). — epa.gov
  17. US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Natural Resources Defense Council v. US Environmental Protection Agency, Nos. 20-70787 and 20-70801. Filed June 17, 2022. — ca9.uscourts.gov
  18. European Food Safety Authority. Conclusion on the peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance glyphosate. EFSA J. 2015;13(11):4302. — doi:10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4302
  19. European Food Safety Authority. Peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance glyphosate. EFSA J. 2023;21(7):8164. — doi:10.2903/j.efsa.2023.8164
  20. European Food Safety Authority. Glyphosate: no critical areas of concern; data gaps identified. News release, 6 July 2023. — efsa.europa.eu
  21. European Commission. Renewal of the approval of glyphosate (Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2660). — food.ec.europa.eu
  22. McHenry LB. The Monsanto Papers: poisoning the scientific well. Int J Risk Saf Med. 2018;29(3-4):193-205. — PubMed PMID: 29843257
  23. US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Hardeman v. Monsanto Co., Nos. 19-16636 and 19-16708. Filed May 14, 2021. — ca9.uscourts.gov
  24. Court of Appeal of the State of California, First Appellate District. Johnson v. Monsanto Co., A155940, A156706. Filed July 20, 2020. — courts.ca.gov
  25. Court of Appeal of the State of California, First Appellate District. Pilliod v. Monsanto Co., A158228. Filed August 9, 2021. — courts.ca.gov
  26. Duke SO, Powles SB. Glyphosate: a once-in-a-century herbicide. Pest Manag Sci. 2008;64(4):319-325. — PubMed PMID: 18273882
  27. Heap I, Duke SO. Overview of glyphosate-resistant weeds worldwide. Pest Manag Sci. 2018;74(5):1040-1049. — PubMed PMID: 29024306
  28. Shehata AA, Schrödl W, Aldin AA, Hafez HM, Krüger M. The effect of glyphosate on potential pathogens and beneficial members of poultry microbiota in vitro. Curr Microbiol. 2013;66(4):350-358. — PubMed PMID: 23224412
  29. Motta EVS, Raymann K, Moran NA. Glyphosate perturbs the gut microbiota of honey bees. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2018;115(41):10305-10310. — PubMed PMID: 30249635
  30. Mesnage R, Teixeira M, Mandrioli D, et al. Use of shotgun metagenomics and metabolomics to evaluate the impact of glyphosate or Roundup MON 52276 on the gut microbiota and serum metabolome of Sprague-Dawley rats. Environ Health Perspect. 2021;129(1):17005. — PubMed PMID: 33502259
  31. US Patent 7,771,736 B2. Glyphosate formulations and their use for the inhibition of 5-enolpyruvylshikimate-3-phosphate synthase. Granted August 10, 2010. — patents.google.com
  32. US Patent 3,160,632. Toy ADF, Uhing EH. Aminomethylenephosphinic acids, salts thereof, and process for their production. Granted December 8, 1964. — patents.google.com
  33. Bøhn T, Cuhra M, Traavik T, et al. Compositional differences in soybeans on the market: glyphosate accumulates in Roundup Ready GM soybeans. Food Chem. 2014;153:207-215. — PubMed PMID: 24491722
  34. Berg CJ, King HP, Delenstarr G, et al. Glyphosate residue concentrations in honey attributed through geospatial analysis to proximity of large-scale agriculture and transfer off-site by bees. PLoS One. 2018;13(7):e0198876. — PubMed PMID: 29995880
  35. McGuire MK, McGuire MA, Price WJ, et al. Glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid are not detectable in human milk. Am J Clin Nutr. 2016;103(5):1285-1290. — PubMed PMID: 27030536
  36. Gillezeau C, van Gerwen M, Shaffer RM, et al. The evidence of human exposure to glyphosate: a review. Environ Health. 2019;18(1):2. — PubMed PMID: 30612564
  37. Fagan J, Bohlen L, Patton S, Klein K. Organic diet intervention significantly reduces urinary glyphosate levels in U.S. children and adults. Environ Res. 2020;189:109898. — PubMed PMID: 32797996
  38. Dorlach T, Gunasekara S. The politics of glyphosate regulation: lessons from Sri Lanka's short-lived ban. Global Health. 2023;19(1):84. — PubMed PMID: 37957659
  39. Duke SO, Reddy KN, Bu K, Cizdziel JV. Effects of glyphosate on the mineral content of glyphosate-resistant soybeans (Glycine max). J Agric Food Chem. 2012;60(27):6764-6771. — PubMed PMID: 22708739
  40. Richard S, Moslemi S, Sipahutar H, Benachour N, Seralini GE. Differential effects of glyphosate and roundup on human placental cells and aromatase. Environ Health Perspect. 2005;113(6):716-720. — PubMed PMID: 15929894
  41. PubMed — search for recent research

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Connections

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