Reasons for the extension of glyphosate validity

The reasons for the extension of glyphosate's validity have been reported by Leo in previous articles (see the rereview road below for details), mainly due to the fact that the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) said earlier this year that it needed more time to evaluate and delayed the end of the peer review part of its responsibility until July 2023. As a result, the glyphosate rereview timeline has extended well beyond the expiration date of the original approval.

The zigzag extension of glyphosate's validity period

14 October: The European Commission (EC) made a proposal to temporarily extend the validity of glyphosate for one year in accordance with the EU pesticide regulation and submitted it to the Member States at the SCoPAFF meeting, but did not obtain the necessary majority vote, and the application was submitted to the arbitration committee;

November 15: At the meeting of the Arbitration Commission, no member State changed its position and still failed to reach an opinion on whether to approve the extension, and the decision was returned to the EC;

December 2: The European Union issued a notice to extend the validity of glyphosate approval.

In response to this decision, the Glyphosate Rereview Working Group (GRG) said it was pleased that the Commission extended the validity of glyphosate by one year in accordance with EU pesticide regulations to allow EFSA sufficient time to complete its ongoing assessment. We reiterate our confidence in the EU pesticide regulatory process and will continue to work transparently with the European Commission and Member States to conduct a full and thorough rereview of glyphosate.

The announcement was published in the Official Journal of the European Union on December 5, 2022 and is expected to come into force on December 12, 2022.