Record breaking 1 million strong European Citizens’ Initiative launched

*Demand for glyphosate ban triggers formal European Commission response*

 In the fastest growing European Citizens’ Initiative in history, more than a million citizens are calling on the European Commission to propose a ban on glyphosate, the world’s most widely used herbicide. The initiative now necessitates a formal response from the Commission.

This historic effort, spearheaded by a coalition of civil society groups, comes as European member states decide whether or not to issue a new license for glyphosate. Marketed by Monsanto as Roundup, the herbicide was listed by the World Health Organization’s cancer research agency as a “probable carcinogen” in 2015. For over 2 years, citizen pressure has stopped member states from agreeing to a full 10-year re-license.

Bert Wander, Avaaz Campaign Director said: "The people of Europe have made it clear that they do not want cancer-linked chemicals coating their food, parks, and playgrounds. Europe must respond by suspending the use of glyphosate as long as questions over its safety remain."

The ECI calls for a ban on glyphosate, reform of Europe’s pesticide approval process, and an EU-wide mandatory reduction target for pesticides. It crossed one million signers across 28 EU member states in under five months, and remains open for signatures until 30 June.

Public concern over the safety of glyphosate skyrocketed after the World Health Organisation’s International Agency on Research on Cancer (IARC), the world’s premier cancer research body, classified glyphosate as a probable carcinogen.

European regulatory agencies have challenged IARC’s assessment, but recent reports about their failure to consider evidence of cancer in animal studies, over-reliance on unpublished industry research, and the role of a controversial US official linked to Monsanto in excluding key studies has raised concerns about the validity of  EU risk assessments.

For more information or to sign the Stop Glyphosate ECI, please visit www.stopglyphosate.org.

ENDS

For interviews and requests, please contact Daniel Boese, +491778405700 daniel.boese@avaaz.org