Science journal retracts study on safety of Monsanto’s Roundup: ‘serious ethical concerns’

Paper published in 2000 found glyphosate was not harmful, while internal emails later revealed company's influence

The journal Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology has formally retracted a sweeping scientific paper published in 2000 that became a key defense for Monsanto's claim that Roundup herbicide and its active ingredient glyphosate don't cause cancer.

Martin van den Berg, the journal's editor in chief, said in a note accompanying the retraction that he had taken the step because of serious ethical concerns regarding the independence and accountability of the authors of this article and the academic integrity of the carcinogenicity studies presented".

The paper, titled Safety Evaluation and Risk Assessment of the Herbicide Roundup and Its Active Ingredient, Glyphosate, for Humans, concluded that Monsanto's glyphosate-based weed killers posed no health risks to humans - no cancer risks, no reproductive risks, no adverse effects on development of endocrine systems in people or animals.