Luxembourg announced on [April 3] that it was reauthorizing the marketing of glyphosate-based products, after being the first European Union (EU) country in 2020 to ban this controversial herbicide, a ban overturned by the Grand Duchy’s justice.
On February 1, 2020, the country withdrew the marketing authorization for glyphosate-based plant protection products, while tolerating the disposal of existing stocks, before completely banning their use on Luxembourg soil from January 1. 2021.
The ban was invalidated by a decision rendered Friday, March 31 on appeal by the Administrative Court of Luxembourg. The judges pointed to “the absence of indication of any legal argument” to ban the 8 products concerned in contradiction with the legal regime of the EU which allowed their distribution.
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“The Court confirmed that the withdrawal (of market authorizations) violated European law,” welcomed German chemicals giant Bayer, which had filed an appeal before the administrative courts against the ban on its products, in particular its Roundup brand. “This withdrawal was not based on any scientific or regulatory element incriminating glyphosate or products based on this substance,” reacted a spokesperson for the group to AFP.
[Editor’s note: This article has been translated from French and edited for clarity]
