Monsanto think it’s scored a big win. A UN panel just ruled that glyphosate - the core ingredient in Roundup weedkiller -  is “probably not carcinogenic to humans”. But that’s only half the story.

As with all things Monsanto, we have reason to be skeptical of this UN panel report. First of all, it’s release seems to be timed with EU member states’ upcoming vote on whether or not to renew the license for the world’s most widely used pesticide. The report also flies in the face the World Health Organization’s earlier designation of glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans.”

What’s worse: the UN panel on glyphosate was compromised by chemical industry ties. It turns out the co-chair of the UN committee is also the vice president of an institute that has accepted more than $1 million in donations from Monsanto and other industry interests.   

Tell the UN if it wants to weigh in on the dangers of glyphosate, it needs to re-convene a panel of experts WITHOUT ties to Monsanto or other pesticide corporations.

Professor Alan Boobis, who chaired the UN’s joint meeting on glyphosate, is also vice president of International Life Science Institute Europe. In 2012, the group took a $500,000 donation from Monsanto and $528,500 from an industry group representing Monsanto, Dow, and Syngenta.

The UN panel’s blatant conflict of interest is unacceptable. Regulators look to the UN as an objective authority: when EU member states vote on whether or not to renew glyphosate’s license, they could be making a decision impacting billions based on misinformation. We need to demand the UN fix its mess.

Together, we’ve been fighting Monsanto long enough to know they aren’t afraid to play dirty. We can’t sit by and watch as Monsanto’s money distorts the ruling of authorities like the UN.  The review of glyphosate’s safety can’t be carried out by scientists funded by the pesticide industry. For the safety of people and ecosystems across the world, we need to tell the UN it must do better.