Roundup

Roundup is an herbicide sold by Monsanto. It includes an active ingredient (glyphosate), water, and and a surfactant, polyoxyethylene-alkylamine (POEA), which allows the herbicide to adhere to a plant's leaves so that the active ingredient can penetrate them. Roundup was the first glyphosate herbicide sold and, while numerous glyphosate products are now sold worldwide, Monsanto continues to sell glyphosate products under the brand name Roundup. Some genetically engineered crops, called Roundup Ready Crops, have their DNA altered to allow them to withstand glyphosate. These include Roundup Ready soybeans, corn, canola, sugarbeets, and alfalfa.

History

Glyphosate's usefulness as an herbicide was discovered by Monsanto scientist John E. Franz in 1970. It was first introduced in the herbicide Roundup by Monsanto in 1974. As of 2005, Monsanto's glyphosate products alone were registered in more than 130 countries for use in more than 100 crops.

Much of Roundup's success is due to the perception that it is safe and nontoxic, as well as the fact that it is effective against so many species of plants. However, its safety is the subject of controversy. In 2005, Monsanto wrote:

"Glyphosate binds tightly to most types of soil so it is not available for uptake by roots of nearby plants. It works by disrupting a plant enzyme involved in the production of amino acids that are essential to plant growth. The enzyme, EPSP synthase, is not present in humans or animals, contributing to the low risk to human health from the use of glyphosate according to label directions."

Roundup has won awards due to its perception of effectiveness and safety. In 1987, Franz received the National Medal of Technology for his work on glyphosate. In September 1994, Farm Chemicals magazine named Roundup one of the "Top 10 Products That Changed the Face of Agriculture." In 1996, Monsanto received the Presidential Award for Sustainable Development for "pioneering sustainable technologies" including glyphosate. The same year, Monsanto received the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award for "environmentally responsible systems used in the manufacture of glyphosate herbicides.

For more information, see the article on glyphosate.

Articles and resources

Related SourceWatch articles

• Glyphosate
• Monsanto
• Roundup Ready Crops
• Biotechnology
• Glyphosate Resistant Weeds

External resources

• Roundup/Glyphosate Background Materials, Monsanto.
• Glyphosate Review History and Regulatory Outcomes, Australian Government, Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority.
• Bott, S., Tesfamariam, T., Kania, A., Eman, B., Aslan, N., Roemheld, V., and Neumann, G. 2011, Phytotoxicity of glyphosate soil residues re-mobilised by phosphate fertilization. Plant Soil 315:2-11. DOI 10, 1007/s11104-010-06989-3.
• Schafer, J.R., Hallett, S.G., and Johnson, W.G. 2010. Role of soil-borne fungi in the response of giant ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) biotypes to glyphosate. Proc. Northcentral Weed Sci. Soc. 65:.
• Zobiole, L.H.S., Oliveira, R.S.Jr., Huber, D.M., Constantin, J., Castro, C., Oliveira, F.A., Oliveira, A. Jr. 2010. Glyphosate reduces shoot concentrations of mineral nutrients in glyphosate-resistant soybeans. Plant Soil 328:57-69.
• Zobiole, L.H.S., Oliveira, R.S. Jr., Kremer, R.J., Constantin, J., Yamada, T., Castro, C., Oliveiro, F.A., and Oliveira, A. Jr. 2010. Effect of glyposate on symbiotic N2 fixation and nickel concentration in glyphosate-resistant soybeans. Applied Soil Ecol. 44:176-180.
• Bellaloui, N., reddy, K.N., Zablotowicz, R.M., Abbas, H.K., and Abel, C.A. 2009. Effects of glyphosate application on seed iron and root ferric (III) reductase in soybean cultivars. J. Agric. Food Chem. 57:9569-9574.
• Cakmak, I., Yazici, A., Tutus, Y., Ozturk, L. 2009. Glyphosate reduced seed and leaf concentrations of calcium, magnesium, manganese, and iron in non-glyphosate resistant soybean. European J. Agron. 31:114-119.
• Kremer, R.J. and Means, N.E. 2009. Glyphosate and glyphosate-resistant crop interactions with rhizosphere microorganisms. European J. Agron. 31:153-161.
• Johal, G.R. and Huber, D.M. 2009. Glyphosate effects on diseases of plants. European J. Agron. 31:144-152.
• M.R. Fernandez, R.P. Zentner, P. Basnyat, D. Gehl, F. Selles, and Don Huber, "Glyphosate associations with cereal diseases caused by Fusarium spp. in the Canadian Prairies," European Journal of Agronomy (2009), 31:133-143.
• Yamada, T., Kremer, R.J., Camargo e Castro, P.R., and Wood, B.W. 2009. Glyphosate interactions with physiology, nutrition, and diseases of plants: Threat to agricultural sustainability? European J. Agron. 31:111-113.
• Schafer, J.R., Westhoven, A.M., Kruger, G.R., Davis, V.M., Hallett, S.G., and Johnson, W.G. 2009. Effect of growth media on common lambsquarter and giant ragweed biotypes response to glyphosate. Proc. Northcentral Weed Sci. Soc. 64:102.
• Tsehaye Tesfamariam, S. Bott, I. Cakmak, V. Römheld, G. Neumann, "Glyphosate in the rhizosphere – role of waiting times and different glyphosate binding forms in soils for phytoxicity to non-target plants," European Journal of Agronomy (2009), 31:126-132.
• Levent Ozturk, Atilla Yazici, Selim Eker, Ozgur Gokmen, Volker Römheld, and Ismail Cakmak, "Glyphosate inhibition of ferric reductase activity in iron deficient sunflower roots," New Phytologist (2008), 177:899-906.
• Eker, S., Ozturk, L., Yazici, A., Erenoglu, B., Roemheld, V., and Cakmak, I. 2006. Foliar-applied glyphosate substantially reduced uptake and transport of iron and manganese in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) plants. J. Agric. Food Chem. 54:100019-10025.
• Larsen, R.L., Hill, A.L., Fenwick, A., Kniss, A.R., Hanson, L.E., and Miller, S.D. 2006. Influence of glyphosate on Rhizoctonia and Fusarium root rot in sugar beet. Pest Manag. Sci. 62:1182-1192.
• Johal, G.R. and Rahe, J.E. 1990. Role of phytoalexins in the suppression of resistance of Phaseolus vulgaris to Colletotrichum lindemuthianum by glyphosate. Canad. J. Plant Pathol. 12:225-235.
• Gurmukh S. Johal and James E. Rahe, "Effect of soilborne plant-pathogenic fungi on the herbicidal action of glyphosate on bean seedlings," Phytopathology (1984), 74:950-955.

External articles

• "New Study Is First to Show That Pesticides Can Induce Morphological Changes in Vertebrate Animals, Says Pitt Researcher: When exposed to the popular herbicide Roundup®, tadpoles change shape in ways that are normally induced by predators," University of Pittsburgh press release, March 30, 2012.
• Michael J. Coren, "Monsanto-Resistant Weeds Take Root, Raising Food Prices," Fast Company, July 20, 2011.
• Tom Philpott, "Monsanto's "Superweeds" Gallop Through Midwest," Mother Jones, July 19, 2011.
• Jill Richardson, "Why Is Damning New Evidence About Monsanto's Most Widely Used Herbicide Being Silenced?" Alternet, April 27, 2011.
• William Neuman and Andrew Pollack, "Farmers Cope With Roundup-Resistant Weeds," New York Times, May 3, 2010.