The world’s population continues to increase. It is no secret. By 2050, the world’s population is expected to reach 9.7 billion people around the world, which is more than 2 billion more than today.1 The problem is that the land that can be used for farming isn’t growing with the population. This causes serious issues for farmers, who need to create enough food items of good quality to provide food for Canadians as well as other people across the globe.
グリホサート Canada is the fifth largest exporter of food across the world.2 Canadian farmers will be essential in supplying food for the growing population. Not only will they have to cater for more people than they have ever had to, but they’ll need to do it while they combat pests and diseases that can affect their crops, manage unpredictable changes in the weather, and make sure that their soil is in good shape and robust for generations of farmers to follow.
Farmers will require 70 percent more food production by 2050 to keep up with the increasing number of people. *Source The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations How to feed the world by 2050
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations How to feed the world by 2050
The increasing demand for food is just too to be handled by farmers by themselves. Modern technology and tools including herbicides, such as glyphosate can be employed to assist farmers in a more efficient and precisely manage weeds, which results in an increased security and sustainability of food supply.
What is the exact meaning of Glyphosate?
Glyphosate, a versatile and non-selective herbicide, has been utilized by land managers, gardeners and farmers all over the globe for over 40 years. It is a chemical that induces an enzyme required by plants to grow, in this case unwanted weeds. These enzymes do not exist in animals or humans.4 Glyphosate does not pose any risk when used correctly.
There are also a wide range of uses for glyphosate that go beyond agriculture. Municipalities utilize the chemical in their urban green areas to safeguard the wildlife and the public from toxic weeds.6 It’s also used for railways to ensure the conductors’ visibility and to prevent fires from forming on the tracks.7
In recent years, glyphosate has been the subject of more scrutiny and is being used in our everyday life. Although it’s essential to ask what goes onto and into our food, it’s worth noting that more than 160 health regulatory bodies, which includes Health Canada, agree that glyphosate is safe for human consumption when used correctly.8
Canadians must be able to know what glyphosate is and the way it is used and the benefits it brings to food production.
Why use glyphosate in agriculture?
Glyphosate-based herbicides can be used in agriculture to benefit consumers, farmers, the environment, and everyone else. This is essential for effective weed control, secure food supply, as well as sustainability of the environment. Let’s look at each one.
According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization the world’s farmers could lose anywhere between 30-40% and 50 percent of their crops due to weeds, pests, and diseases. This is especially devastating for farmers since the crops they grow are their main source of income.
So, it’s no wonder farmers have come to rely on the tools they rely on, year in and year out. Glyphosate is a powerful method to manage destructive weeds in fields, especially those that are resistant to glyphosate.
Crops and Weeds the battle for their lives
Glyphosate gives crops a fighting chance.
グリホサート Canadians as well as other consumers across the world reap the benefits of abundant, inexpensive food choices
This is leading to a greater risk of the risk of food insecurity. https://axel.as-1.co.jp/asone/g/NC64-5169-17/ Without modern farming innovations and the use of glyphosate, Canadians could expect to pay 55% more for food.11
This could make it harder for us to locate the food we love. Farmers will be able to cultivate more of the foods we love for years due to the advancements in the science of plants.
Glyphosate isn’t just used to in removing weeds and maintain the price of produce at the grocery store however. It also aids farmers in taking care of what Cherilyn Jolly-Nagle farmer in Mossbank, Saskatchewan calls “their most important asset”–their property.
Keeping foods we love on the table
Farmers can prosper with the help of crop protection tools such as Glyphosate are utilized to shield their crops from disease and insects.
42% More grains like wheat or corn,
72% More Fruit
83% more vegetables and potatoes12
The benefits are evident. But is glyphosate safe for use?
Simply simply put simply, yes. Like all pesticides , they should be applied according the label instructions. In Canada Glyphosate usage is regulated by both the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) which checks crops for residues of pesticides to ensure that farmers are using it in a safe manner and also the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) that provides the regulations, guidelines including product submission evaluations, product submissions, and approvals (or rejections)–and has one of the most rigorous evaluation processes across the world.14
Although the regulatory agencies are responsible for ensuring that farmers use herbicides approved by the FDA in a safe manner, farmers and manufacturers are crucial in ensuring that glyphosate has been properly and safely used to avoid any harm to the environment, animals or humans as well as other individuals.
Because of technological advancements and the use precision farming, farmers can use data to be more precise when applying glyphosate in specific regions.
It is not common that pesticide residues are present in food items. However, it can be harmful if it is. CFIA ensures that farmers apply herbicides in a safe manner and adhere to the established limits for residue16. It is not common and doesn’t pose a risk for human or animal health17.
グリホサート Sustainable farming practices are a part of the use of Glyphosate
Farmers employ herbicides like glyphosate in integrated pest/weedmanagement practices. This means that they employ more herbicides, not just weedicides. Glyphosate has enabled farmers to use conservation techniques and no-till methods to provide long-term benefits for soil and the air.
– The reduction or elimination plowing or tilling land
Reduced CO2 emissions
– Capturing carbon in soil
– Improving the health of soil
– Limiting erosion and water runoff
“No pesticide regulator anywhere in the world has ever considered glyphosate to present a risk of cancer to humans at the current concentrations.” – Health Canada (January 11, 2019).
https://www.jacom.or.jp/nouyaku/news/2020/05/200519-44387.php Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
Now is a better time than any other for Canadian farmers to have the tools, technology and assistance needed to meet growing food supply needs.
Farmers can be expected to keep preserving our food’s safety and abundance by using safe food and agricultural security practices and pest management. Glyphosate is just one of the instruments they’ll employ to ensure Canadians and everyone else around the world have access and affordability to healthy and affordable food.