German chemical and pharmaceutical group Bayer has announced that it is developing a product that could be used as an alternative to the controversial herbicide glyphosate, although the consortium continues to insist that it is safe.
“We are already testing this new substance on real plants”, with the aim of putting the new product on the market in 2028, that is, within four years, said the company's executive director, Bill Anderson, to the newspaper “Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung ” (FAS).
According to Bill Anderson, this is the first pioneering innovation in this field in 30 years.
Glyphosate was originally developed by the North American agrochemical company Monsanto, which was acquired by Bayer in 2018 for more than $60 billion.
Since then, the German consortium has faced tens of thousands of lawsuits for damages due to a possible carcinogenic effect of glyphosate.
Bayer has always rejected the accusations, and Bill Anderson insisted at a press conference on Tuesday to present its 2023 financial results that “glyphosate is safe”.
Even so, the company announced that it wants to look for “new approaches in and out of court” to reduce the legal risks and uncertainties associated with glyphosate.
Investors have long criticized the fact that the consortium has not yet managed to resolve the glyphosate issue.
At the end of January, there were around 54.000 processes in progress, 2.000 more than in October.
Accumulated provisions for this purpose amounted to 6,3 billion dollars (around 5,7 billion euros) at the end of 2023.
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