Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum, systemic herbicide used to control weeds. It is the most widely-used herbicide in the world and is used in public spaces in most villages, towns and cities of the UK. It is classified as a Highly Hazardous Pesticide (HHP) due to its potential harmful impact on human health.
In March 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC, part of the UN World Health Organisation) declared glyphosate to be genotoxic (it causes DNA damage), carcinogenic to animals, and a “probable carcinogen” to humans. This ruling was based on a review of one thousand publicly available scientific studies by independent experts. Meanwhile, since 2018, there have been a spate of US court cases linking Monsanto’s Roundup – which contains glyphosate as its key ingredient – to the potential risk of developing non-Hodgkin lymphoma (a type of cancer). It is worth noting that many of these cases were linked to non-agricultural activities such as grounds maintenance and landscape gardening. Landmark legal defeats for Monsanto (now Bayer) have resulted in jury verdicts worth billions.
There is an ever-growing body of evidence linking glyphosate to both environmental and human health harms. In June 2025, the most comprehensive study ever conducted on glyphosate was published. The Global Glyphosate Study concluded that glyphosate and glyphosate-based herbicides cause multiple types of cancer, even at exposure levels deemed to be “safe” by governments, including the EU.