Don’t compromise on glyphosate, vaccination or industrial chemicals
You may remember on 22 March, the European Parliament’s ENVI committee voted to block the European Commission’s 15 year renewal of glyphosate’s authorisation of use in the EU. Today it went to a plenary vote of the entire European Parliament in Strasbourg. Logic might dictate that the Parliament would take the advice of those MEPs most closely involved with human health, safety and the environment. But lobbying from the Big Agri sector has been huge – and in true European style, a compromise deal was found: a recommendation for only a 7-year, rather than the usual 15-year, renewal. There were other aspects to the resolution too, including a recommendation to not approve non-professional use and for a re-evaluation of the herbicide’s safety.
Given glyphosate’s ubiquitous nature, along with its carcinogenic and endocrine disruption potential, let alone its multiple effects on the environment including on soil microbes, a compromise is just not good enough. It appears to reflect more concern for business and farming than it does for human health or the environment. It’s despicable — given how long the dangers of the herbicide have been known — that farmers haven’t been better educated about safer alternatives, or improved and integrated, less-chemically dependent crop management practices. Because of this, pro-glyphosate lobbyists have had an easy time of it and pressurised the Parliament into the compromise.
But it’s not over – it remains to be seen how the European Commission will respond. The outcome will offer another test of just how much, or little, power, the primary democratic voice of the EU, still retains.
Our other stories this week also relate to compromise. In the case of the controversial documentary Vaxxed, it’s about not compromising – and it’s good to see Robert De Niro now speak out. When it comes to our environmental burden from chemicals, compromising isn’t an option either. Especially not as we get older or closer to the limit of the capacity of our innate detoxification system that has been gifted to us through our evolution.
There’s loads more this week on holistic cancer rehab, genetically modified glowing plants, legalisation of cannabis in Australia – and much more.
In health, naturally
Rob Verkerk, PhD
Founder, executive & scientific director