Three prominent Brazilian civil society organizations have formally called on the National Health Surveillance Agency (Anvisa) to urgently reevaluate and temporarily suspend the registration of glyphosate, atrazine, and alachlor, citing new scientific evidence that questions the safety of these widely used herbicides.
The request was jointly submitted by the Permanent Campaign Against Pesticides and For Life, the Brazilian Association of Collective Health (Abrasco), and the Consumer Defense Institute (Idec). The organizations invoked the precautionary principle, arguing that regulatory action is necessary to protect public health in light of recent developments.
A central focus of the petition is glyphosate, the most extensively used herbicide active ingredient in Brazil. On December 3, 2025, the scientific journal Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology retracted a 2000 article that had concluded glyphosate posed no carcinogenic risk to humans. The retraction followed revelations of undisclosed conflicts of interest, including direct involvement of Monsanto employees in drafting the article. Investigative reports also highlighted industry interference in the publication process, raising concerns about the integrity of the conclusions.
The organizations note that the retracted study relied heavily on unpublished industry data while overlooking independent research already available at the time. The journal acknowledged that the article significantly influenced regulatory decisions worldwide, including Brazil’s 2020 decision to maintain glyphosate registration without changes to its carcinogenicity classification.
The petition also references new findings related to atrazine and alachlor. In November 2025, The Lancet Oncology reported that the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified both herbicides as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” Atrazine is currently one of Brazil’s top-selling pesticides, particularly important in corn production.
Under Brazil’s regulatory framework, Anvisa is permitted to reevaluate active ingredients at any time if new evidence suggests increased health risks. The organizations are requesting fresh scientific assessments with public participation and the temporary suspension of all three herbicides during the review process.
If adopted, these measures could have major implications for Brazilian agriculture, where glyphosate and atrazine are central to weed management systems. The case highlights growing global debates over scientific independence, regulatory transparency, and how best to balance agricultural productivity with public health protection.
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