In February, the African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) released a report documenting concentrations of glyphosate in wheat and maize that exceeded default maximum residue limits. ACB also found traces of the herbicide in bread and baby cereal. “Finding glyphosate in baby cereal was very disturbing. Babies are the most vulnerable. It shouldn’t be there. We know that glyphosate is an endocrine disruptor, so if young babies are being fed this every day, that is highly problematic. It can affect their physical health and development,” Zakiyya Ismail, research coordinator at ACB, said in a phone call with Mongabay. Following its discovery, ACB formally requested that South Africa’s agriculture ministry deregister and ban glyphosate and glyphosate-based herbicides (GBHs). So far, the request has not been acted upon. Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Bayer’s Roundup and other widely used herbicides, is South Africa’s most-used herbicide and is commonly applied to Roundup Ready genetically modified crops. “Glyphosate is not approved for use on wheat here in South Africa, yet we found it in wheat flour and in baby cereals made from wheat. Why?” Ismail asked before adding that ACB is looking for answers. Mongabay contacted both Bayer and South Africa’s Department of Agriculture for comment but did not receive a response by the time of publication. Glyphosate works by blocking a plant’s ability to produce certain amino acids, which prevents them from growing. However, glyphosate can also enter the human body through food, contact with contaminated surfaces or inhalation. Research has linked GBHs to…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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