FDA Suspends Testing for Glyphosate Residues in Food
We’ve written recently (http://bit.ly/2uq6kru) about the State of California’s fight against Glyphosate. The chemical - labeled by the World Health Organization as a “probable human carcinogen” - is found in popular herbicides/pesticides, and is finally coming under the scrutiny it deserves. Recently, California has ramped up their fight against the chemical, and they’re close to getting it added to the ever-growing Prop 65 list. Businesses that use ingredients found on the Prop 65 list must “warn Californians about significant exposures to chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive harm.”
Early in 2017, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began to dig into glyphosate with what they called a “special assignment”. The goal of the special assignment was to “analyze certain foods for residues of the weed killer called glyphosate after the agency was criticized by the U.S. Government Accountability Office for failing to include glyphosate in annual testing programs that look for many less-used pesticides.” The FDA’s plan was a noble one. Unfortunately they’ve run into more than a few problems, are now suspending testing for glyphosate, and it is unknown when/if they’ll resume testing. The FDA issues when testing the residue of glyphosate on foods were two-fold:
1. “Disagreement and difficulties with establishing a standard methodology to use across the agency’s multiple U.S. laboratories.”
2. “Equipment issues…with some labs citing a need for more sensitive instruments.”
FDA spokeswoman Megan McSeveny tried to quell consumer concerns, releasing a statement on glyphosate’s testing. The statement read in part, “As testing for glyphosate will expand to several locations, we are currently working to ensure that the methods are validated for use in these labs. As soon as the validation is completed, testing for glyphosate will resume,” she said. “We cannot speculate on timing at this point.” Let’s hope that the FDA keeps its word, and continues to dig into just how much glyphosate we’re exposed to when purchasing our fruits and vegetables.
To learn more about the FDA’s suspension of glyphosate residue testing, follow the link below: