Glyphosate is the active ingredient in the popular herbicide
known commonly as Round Up. It accounts for about 25% of herbicide use in the
world. (http://www.glyphosate.eu/glyphosate-basics/what-glyphosate)Round Up is
a product produced by the company Monsanto.
Monsanto is also the biggest promoter of genetically modified foods in
the world. They have engineered Round Up
resistant crops so that there can spray the chemicals in the fields were the
desired crop grows and all other plants will die except for the farmed
crop. However now undesired weeds are
becoming "Round Up resistant" so farmers now need to use over double
the amount of pesticides they used to use in many cases. These GM plants are a relatively new science
and we have no idea of knowing the long-term effects of tampering with the
genes of these plants. The repeated use of this herbicide effects animals that
live in or around the field were it was applied in as well as the near by water
supply.(http://www.beyondpesticides.org/infoservices/pesticidefactsheets/toxic/glyphosate.php) Glyphosate has been found to hinder the
growth and reproduction of earthworms, lady bugs, and other insects that are
actually beneficial to the growth of the crops.
Not to mention we are eating the food that this pesticide is being
sprayed on. So humans are being exposed
to this chemical whether they know it or not.
Glyphosate is strongly believed to be linked to causing lymphoma,
hormonal diseases in children, and low testosterone males. The EPA has just allowed the amount of
glyphosate in oil seed crops such as soybeans to raise from 20 parts per
million to 40 parts per million. The
parts per million aloud in food crops has been raised considerably as
well. Many professionals believe that
said regulations are to high and if consumed regularly can be very harmful to
humans over time. Many believe the EPAs
reasoning for this may have something to do with the several leaders in the
organization having very close relationship with Monsanto.
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