Brussels, Belgium
20 March 2015
Today the Lancet Oncology published conclusions from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) that found five crop protection products to be "possibly" or "probably" carcinogenic to humans. CropLife International has issued the following statement in response.
Statement from CropLife International President and CEO Howard Minigh:
The IARC conclusions published in the Lancet Oncology contradict the world's most robust regulatory systems - namely the European Union and the United States - where crop protection products have undergone extensive reviews based on multi-year testing and where active ingredients such as glyphosate and malathion been found not to present a carcinogenic risk to humans.
CropLife International believes that IARC has made its conclusions as a result of an incomplete data review where key evidence has been omitted.
The IARC results also contradict the Joint Meeting on Pesticide Residues (JMPR) which is an internationally recognized expert body administered jointly by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and IARC's parent body, the World Health Organization. The JMPR is made up of the world's foremost toxicology specialists and has also approved the safety of these active ingredients.
The crop protection industry, represented by CropLife, will continue to work with national regulators and international bodies to ensure each and every product goes through a rigorous testing procedure and only enters the market when approved as safe by the regulatory authorities.
CropLife International believes conclusions about a matter as important as human safety must be based on the highest quality science that adheres to internationally recognized standards. The IARC classification system is not aligned with current international regulations and their recent decisions create needless public concern.
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