Chemical Controversies
Pesticides are substances that prevent, destroy, repel, or reduce the severity of pests. Pests are living things that occur where they are not wanted or that cause damage to humans, crops, or animals. Pests can be insects, rodents, unwanted plants, bacteria, viruses, or different types of fungus. Pesticides can vary in how toxic they are to humans and the environment. Some are persistent in the environment, animals, and birds, lasting for years; others break down soon after they are released. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grants licenses, or registrations, to pesticides that it has found do not pose unreasonable risks to human health and the environment; it has registered at least 865 pesticides, which are used in thousands of pesticide products.
Below is the complete archive of related articles sorted by date.
EPA pitches new rules to limit risks linked to chlopyrifos insecticide exposure
EPA announced a proposal on [Dec. 4] to improve the safety of using the insecticide chlorpyrifos. The proposal follows a ...
EU Court of Justice tosses Brussels lawsuit seeking to ban glyphosate weedkiller
Europe’s highest court on [Dec. 3] tossed out a challenge from Brussels to the European Commission decision that lets Europeans ...
Sweeping glyphosate-cancer settlement could leave many plaintiffs with just ‘a few thousand dollars’
Monsanto owner Bayer AG is making progress toward a sweeping settlement of thousands of U.S. lawsuits brought by people alleging ...
Podcast: COVID killed anti-GMO activism? Environmentalists split over glyphosate; Predatory journal Pokémon hoax
Could the COVID-19 pandemic end anti-GMO activism as we know it? Environmentalists are split over the controversial weedkiller glyphosate; some ...
Non-farming glyphosate weedkiller uses likely harm endangered species, EPA finds
More than 90% of endangered species are “likely to be adversely affected” by use of glyphosate, but mostly through non-agricultural uses, ...
Nematode that liquefies pests could cut insecticide use, study shows
The parasitic nematode, Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita, can significantly reduce losses from invasive slugs. It has been used in Europe as a ...
Gene-edited potato could allow farmers to use ‘less—or even no—insecticide’
A PhD candidate at Michigan State University (MSU), Natalie [Kaiser] specializes in potatoes – in particular, looking at which genes ...
Glyphosate: Deadly ‘poison,’ or biodiversity protection tool? Environmentalists split over controversial weedkiller
.... [A]way from lawsuits and petitions, there are concerns among some opponents of Australia’s invasive weeds that glyphosate – a ...
Ninth Circuit Court refuses to reexamine lawsuit alleging Enlist Duo herbicide approval violated federal law
Enlist Duo’s registration has survived another legal challenge, after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit declined to ...
UK extends license for glyphosate 5 years, will put in place post-Brexit review process
Speaking at the virtual British Crop Production Council (BCPC) 2020 congress, Darren Flynn, head of active substances delivery for the ...
Viewpoint: There’s no such thing as a ‘toxic’ chemical (it’s all based on dose and exposure)—and 4 other common food marketing myths busted
[H]ere are five common “healthy halo” buzzwords to look out for. … 1) Clean Everything from “clean ingredients” to “clean ...
Viewpoint: Eating organic food reduces diabetes risk? Evidence is ‘rather thin’
A recent prospective study finds an inverse association between eating organic and the risk of type 2 diabetes. But the ...
Bt insect toxin in GM crops ‘has no negative effects on honey bees,’ study confirms
Cry78Ba1 is Bacillus thuringiensis Berliner (Bacillales: Bacillaceae) (Bt) protein found with high insecticidal activity against the piercing–sucking insect Laodelphax striatellus Fallén (Homoptera: ...
Viewpoint: Plant biodiversity cuts pesticide use, but may slash crop yields needed to feed more people
Everyone recognizes that less less food means fewer pests but when you have to grow food to keep billions from ...
Mexican biotech expert says his country’s proposed glyphosate weed killer ban ‘based on lies’
[A] researcher and specialist in Molecular and Cellular Biotechnology in Plants, José Miguel Mulet, considered the arguments of supposed ecologists ...
Bayer makes ‘substantial progress’ in settling more glyphosate-cancer suits, but other cases may go to trial
A court-appointed mediator on [Nov, 9] said Bayer AG has made "substantial progress" toward resolving tens of thousands of remaining ...
Viewpoint: GM cotton failed India’s farmers? Another study says yes, but relies on false assumptions and misinterpreted data
Insect-resistant Bt cotton has been the subject of controversial debates for many years. Bt cotton is one of the few ...
France pledged to ban glyphosate, but regulators say phasing out weedkiller probably isn’t possible
The long-awaited publication of the latest report from the National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES) concerning ...
99 percent of almost 10,000 foods below legal pesticide safety levels, USDA finds
The EPA sets “tolerances” to ensure that any potential residues resulting from strictly regulated pesticide use are safe for consumers ...
Bayer close to resolving 88,500 glyphosate-cancer suits, but settlement costs rise by $2 billion
[Bayer’s legal bills] keep rising with costs to handle future [Roundup] lawsuits expected to surge to $2 billion. The German ...
Social media misled you about pesticides. A farmer explains what they are and how they protect our food
It seems that too many people don’t realize that herbicides are considered a type of pesticide. All herbicides are pesticides, ...
Don’t eat it if you can’t pronounce it? Avoiding ‘scary-sounding ingredients’ won’t make you healthier
"If you can’t pronounce it, don’t eat it!” We are told that steering clear of scary-sounding ingredients is a simple, ...
US sugar industry flips the GMO script, hyping eco-benefits of glyphosate-tolerant crops
[The US] sugar beet industry is flipping the narrative, capitalizing on what was once its Achilles heel — its universal ...
EPA backs Bayer appeal in glyphosate-cancer case, arguing juries shouldn’t override expert scientific judgments
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is backing the Monsanto Co.’s claim that federal law should have pre-empted a lawsuit alleging ...
EPA re-registers drift-prone dicamba weedkiller, relieving some farmers and frustrating others who fear crop damage
Farmers can continue to use dicamba for five years, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler said [October 27], offering certainty to cotton ...
Epigenetic breeding could yield enhanced crops—and end run public’s fear of ‘GMOs’
Novel grafted plants — consisting of rootstock epigenetically modified to “believe” it has been under stress — joined to an ...
Bayer urges court to overturn $20M glyphosate-cancer verdict, objecting to ‘unreliable expert testimony’
Roundup manufacturer Monsanto urged three Ninth Circuit judges on [Ocotber 23] to overturn a jury’s verdict finding the weed killer ...
