Food Security and Agrochemicals : Rise and Fall of Glyphosate as Holy Grail of Agriculture Production in the European Union
The agricultural revolution that humanity experienced in the second half of the 20th century was possible thanks to the indiscriminate use of agrochemicals. Fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides made it possible to increase productivity, but they also left a legacy of contamination and a shadow of doubt about the safety of the food we consume. In addition, these were even greater when agrochemicals became an indispensable part of a biotechnological package, enabling the patentability of biological resources. This chapter will study the process through the example of glyphosate, a herbicide whose history of success (and fall from grace) was driven by European and international regulatory changes in the management of chemical, biotechnological and health risks