A majority of French MPs followed the Government and rejected the amendments aimed at including the exit of glyphosate in the law at first reading of the draft Law on Agriculture and Food .

Here is the press release of the 34 civil society organizations (1), including Justice Pesticides, which last week launched a petition to ensure that the President’s commitment to ban glyphosate in France within three years is fulfilled. More than 200,000 citizens have already signed this appeal.

Paris, May 29, 2018 : Once again, financial interests have taken precedence over the health of the population. Emmanuel Macron committed last November to ban glyphosate in France “at the latest in three years”. However, the Government, and in particular the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, continues to hinder any decision that would allow a ban on glyphosate. Is the government playing a double game?

The draft Law on Agriculture and Food debated in the National Assembly offered the opportunity to implement President Emmanuel Macron’s promise to ban glyphosate in France by the end of 2020. Our elected officials and the government, through its Minister of Agriculture, have blocked this prospect.

For the 34 co-signing organisations, this vote and the government’s position are a denial of the given word. More than ever, these organizations remain mobilized to ensure that the precautionary principle is respected. Glyphosate was classified as a probable human carcinogen in 2015 by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) of the World Health Organization. France must get out of glyphosate as announced, with a support plan that is adapted for farmers.

It is essential that the opportunity offered by the draft Agriculture and Food Law is not missed. Determined to make the voices of the first 200,000 signatories of the petition launched last week heard, our organizations demand:

● to Members of the Senate, to protect citizens’ health and the environment by tabling new amendments to definitively ban glyphosate in France within three years at the latest;

● to the Ministry of Agriculture and the Government, to be consistent with Emmanuel Macron’s commitment and to support or at least not oppose amendments to this effect;

● to the President of the Republic, to reiterate firmly his commitment to phasing out glyphosate and calling on the government to take the necessary measures to ban it within three years at the latest.

Sign the petition

(1) Signing Organisations: foodwatch, Générations Futures, Greenpeace, FNH, Agir pour l’Environnement, Les Amis de la Terre, Justice Pesticides, LPO, Fédération Artisans du Monde, ATTAC France, UFC-Que Choisir, Confédération Paysanne, Collectif de soutien aux victimes des pesticides de l’Ouest, Bio Consom’acteurs, Bloom, Réseau Environnement Santé (RES), Terre d’abeilles, Syndicat National d’apiculture, Solidaires, Miramap, Commerce équitable France, Union Nationale de l’Apiculture Française, WeMove.eu, WECF, La Ligue contre le cancer, Alerte des médecins sur les pesticides, Réseau Action Climat, CCFD-Terre-Solidaire, France Nature Environnement, WWF, CFSI, Terre & Humanisme, SOL, Alternatives Agroécologiques et Solidaires, CCLV, WeMove, Power Foule, SumOfUs, Slow Food, Mouvement de l’Agriculture Bio-Dynamique.