Abstract
Recent statements from scientific organisations and court decisions have resulted in widespread public interest and concern over the safety of glyphosate, the most popular and effective herbicide used worldwide. Consequently, glyphosate-based products are under intense scrutiny from governments at all levels. Some jurisdictions have already banned or restricted its use, which will adversely impact international trade in bulk grain commmodities if glyphosate residues are detected. The possibility of farming without glyphosate is becoming an important issue facing the agri-food research and development sector. Contingency plans need to be formulated if that scenario becomes a reality. In this review, we briefly summarize international events that have led to this possible situation, describe current glyphosate usage in major agronomic field crops worldwide, outline possible alternatives to glyphosate in two agroregions and perform bioeconomic model scenarios of southern Australian broadacre cropping systems without the herbicide. Model predictions suggest that we can farm profitably without glyphosate by consistently utilizing key non-herbicidal weed management practices combined with robust pre-emergence soil residual herbicide treatments. However, maintaining low weed seed banks will be challenging. If the social license to use glyphosate is revoked, what other pesticides will soon follow?
Highlights
Glyphosate, a non-selective herbicide with a unique site of action (SOA), was introduced in 1974 by Monsanto (RoundupTM) for use in agriculture and for industrial or ruderal vegetation control
* Avg. dry: ca. 2 weeks later than early dry; double-knock: glyphosate followed by paraquat; triazine: e.g., atrazine; gp A: acetyl-CoA carboxylase inhibitor; SakuraTM: pyroxasulfone; Boxer GoldTM: prosulfocarb + metolachlor
Control treatments: in addition to double-knock, glyphosate is used in crop-topping and swath with spray
Summary
Glyphosate, a non-selective herbicide with a unique site of action (SOA), was introduced in 1974 by Monsanto (RoundupTM) for use in agriculture and for industrial or ruderal (non-crop disturbed) vegetation control. Organization International Agency for Research on Cancer [10] This designation resulted after a hazard-based assessment, which was followed by court cases in 2019 in California, United States (U.S.) that decided in the plaintiffs’ favour. All three studies determined a link between glyphosate exposure and non-Hodkin lymphoma These published scientific journal articles (and others that may follow) may accelerate or precipitate the restriction or outright ban of the herbicide in numerous countries or jurisdictions, such as planned or occurring in Austria, France, Germany and Vietnam. If or when that happens, international trade in many agricultural bulk commodities will likely be impacted because of the lack of maximum residue levels (MRLs) These thresholds are set only for pesticides that are registered in the importing country. We suggest some future directions for research, development and extension for the possible transitioning from farming with glyphosate to farming without glyphosate or key herbicides in general
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