[fact check] escort solid weeding, the Council of Agriculture distorts EU norms, French scholars worry: neurotoxicity should not be underestimated

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From opening up the import of lai pigs to promoting herbicide as a defoliant for red beans, the government has repeatedly said that the decision-making process is in line with international standards. However, during the verification, the "upstream and downstream" found that the Council of Agriculture had failed to cite international norms and documents.

The Council of Agriculture claimed that there was no "ban" in the European Union, but only "not approved" to kill weeds. However, this statement was denied by the European Commission, pointing out that "non-approval is tantamount to banning."

The Council of Agriculture has also repeatedly guaranteed that the risk of herbicide has been carefully assessed, but the international data cited place particular emphasis on a study sponsored by a large pesticide factory 14 years ago. The "upstream and downstream" correspondent in Europe specially visited the pesticide review procedures of the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA) and further visited the French scholar Anthony Laugeray, whose research pointed out that the intake of low doses of herbicide by mother rats is enough to harm embryos and young children.

The Council of Agriculture, which claims that herbicide is safe, says that only maternal exposure to high doses will increase the rate of embryo loss before and after implantation. But when the "upstream and downstream" reporter asked Lu Jiehei about this statement, he worried that this statement was too one-sided and did not fully understand the risks of herbicides. "the effects of herbicides on neural development are far from causing embryo death."

The European Union has made it clear that fixing and killing grass is prohibited.

EFSA: you can't just rely on good experimental practices, you should include all the latest research.

Public opinion is boiling against the opening up of red bean harvesting and the use of killing weeds, and many red bean farmers do not want to go back to the old way of relying on doubtful herbicides and fallen leaves. Although consumers and producers are on the same front against weeding, the Council of Agriculture continues to discuss and lobby in the countryside.

The Council of Agriculture has repeatedly stressed that herbicide, as a desiccant for red beans, is in accordance with international standards and has gone through prudent evaluation procedures. However, at expert meetings and many press conferences, the Council of Agriculture focused on citing the report funded by Bayer, a pharmaceutical company, which was published in a supplement in 2006 without peer review, when Bayer was applying to the European Union for approval for grass control, which was in danger of conflict of interest.

The Taiwan Council of Agriculture pointed out that Bayer's research is important because it follows the good Experimental practice (GLP). However, the excessive emphasis on good experimental practices may have omitted the reports of many universities and research institutions, because they may not be able to afford the high cost of GLP certification.

The European Food Safety Agency (EFSA), which is responsible for the scientific review of pesticides, explained to upstream and downstream reporters that, in the case of the European Union, the research report submitted by the applicant for an active ingredient must be carried out in accordance with the GLP. However, applicants are also required to provide all relevant research, data and analysis published over the past decade, which may not be carried out in GLP-certified laboratories.

The European Food Safety Agency also said that during the review process, if any data or information is insufficient, the applicant must supplement it until the requirements of the European Union are met. "it is important that all audit procedures are transparent, relevant documents will be made public, and the public can participate in them."

Bayer funded the herbicide research and became the main citation source of the Drug and Drug Institute of the Taiwan Council of Agriculture.

Not only reproductive poison, but also nerve poison. France took the lead in banning weeds.

Even though the Bayer contribution report cited by the Council of Agriculture has its importance, it is already 14 years old. According to the files obtained by upstream and downstream, Bayer submitted new information when it renewed its grass control license in France, but the French Food, Environmental Safety and Occupational Health Agency (ANSES) said in August 2017 after a review:

"the risk of herbicide to the health of sprayers is too high, and even workers, neighboring residents and children who enter the fields after application are also exposed. In addition, the harm to mammals in the field cannot be ruled out, and the residual data of crops such as beans, grapes, potatoes, oranges and cherries are not sufficient. " And before the EU ban, it was the first to ban the killing of weeds.

The French ban shows that in addition to food safety on the table, fixing grass also endangers occupational safety in the fields, as well as the health of people living and moving around. In addition, not only reproductive toxicity is worrying, but also neurotoxicity, and vulnerable fetuses and children bear the brunt.

Is there something wrong with French studies? Scholars respond: elaborate experimental design is closer to human exposure model.

The previous report in "upstream and downstream" quoted French scholar Lu Jiehei and others as saying that during pregnancy and lactation, the intake of low doses of herbicide in pregnant mice is enough to harm embryos and young children. However, the Council of Agriculture denied these risks, first claiming that the experiment was to inject medicine into the animal's mouth and nose, and then saying that "the herbicide is dripped directly into the animal's mouth and nose, which is very different from the human behavior pattern."

However, the Taiwan Council of Agriculture actually misunderstood the ingenuity of the experimental design. Lu Jiehei explained carefully to "upstream and downstream" that in order to explore the effects of herbicide on air exposure, simulating the consequences of inhalation from the nasal cavity, a total of about 6 to 13 μ L was injected into each mouse's nasal cavity three to five times, with an average of only 3 to 5 μ L each time.

To prevent dyspnea from affecting the quality of the test, only drop it on one end of the nostril and apply it three times a week, not every day. "the purpose of the experiment is to minimize the pressure on mice," he said. "

Lu Jie-hei admits that the design of animal experiments is very difficult to be perfect, but according to the Taiwan Council of Agriculture, there will be a deviation if you spray the herbicide into the air and be inhaled by rats according to the human behavior pattern. "this design looks the most like human behavior, but ignores the fact that mice lick the fur of themselves and their partners, resulting in over-exposure and inaccurate data." Lu Jie said humorously, "after all, we human beings are not in the habit of licking skin."

Lu Jiehei's results have a very serious warning, he said: "when the embryo is still in its infancy, even if the mother's chronic inhalation dose is very low, it is enough to cause neurodevelopmental defects in the embryo." However, many people underestimate the impact of neurodevelopmental toxicity (Developmental NeuroToxicity,DNT), because not only the active ingredients of herbicide can cause problems, but the degradation of herbicide PPO in the environment will also affect the process of neurogenesis, while the multiple toxic residues in modern life also have cocktail effect.

European research report points out that the risk of fixing herbicides is high, so the European Union no longer allows its agricultural use (Source: Serious shortcomings in the European risk assessment of herbicide tolerant GE plants for human health,2020,p11)

The Council of Agriculture played down the risk of herbicide and unilaterally explained the toxicity mechanism.

However, the Council of Agriculture, which claims that herbicide is safe, said that only maternal exposure to high doses would increase the rate of embryo loss before and after implantation, and pointed out that the toxic mechanism of herbicide is to inhibit the activity of glutamate synthetase (glutamine synthetase). Because glutamate is so important for embryo survival, and the main nutrition of embryos comes from maternal amino acids, when significantly reduced, it will increase embryo mortality.

Hearing about the Council of Agriculture's interpretation of the risk of killing grass, Lu Jiehei said, "this is quite worrying. Although the statement is true, it is one-sided, and there is no complete understanding of the risk of killing grass." The effect of herbicide on neural development goes far beyond the death of embryos. "

The effects of neurodevelopmental toxicity are subtle and may affect one or more biological mechanisms, such as the constancy of glutamate, which can lead to neurological diseases after long-term exposure, he said. More importantly, when there is no effect on the adult brain, it cannot be inferred that it has no effect on children, and the scientific literature has made it clear that the developing brain is far more sensitive and fragile than the mature brain, let alone a developing embryo.

Consumers and producers are opposed to fixing herbicide as a desiccant for red beans, and there is a question mark in their hearts about who it is and why it is open. The Council of Agriculture has repeatedly reassured the people and ensured that the review process was rigorous in line with international standards. However, the verification of "upstream and downstream" found that the Council of Agriculture distorted the significance of the EU ban, exaggerated the importance of good experimental practices, and played down the risk of fixing and killing weeds. The more explanations, the more question marks in people's minds.

Series of readings: a series of reports on "herbicide fixing weeds as a defoliant for red beans"

This season of red beans will be harvested in more than a month. How will the debate over weeding come to an end? Test the wisdom of the government and farmers. (photography / Li Huiyi)