Ingredient Index

Is Glyphosate banned in Europe?

Restricted in EU

No: the EU renewed glyphosate's approval in December 2023 for ten more years, with new conditions and room for member states to restrict further; the US EPA permits it broadly.

CAS: 1071-83-6 Also seen as: Roundup (active ingredient), N-(phosphonomethyl)glycine

What the EU does

Not banned; renewed, contentiously. After member states twice failed to reach a qualified majority either way, the Commission renewed glyphosate's approval in December 2023 for ten years via Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2660, with new conditions including a prohibition on pre-harvest desiccation and required buffer strips. Individual member states can and do restrict further: Germany and others have limited consumer sales and certain uses.

The scientific split underneath: IARC classified glyphosate "probably carcinogenic to humans" (Group 2A) in 2015, while EFSA and ECHA (reviewing a wider regulatory dataset with different methods) concluded it does not warrant that classification. Both positions are held by serious institutions; this site's job is to report the disagreement, not flatten it.

Citation Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009; Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2660

What the US does

Legal and the most-used herbicide in American agriculture. The EPA's position is that glyphosate is "not likely to be carcinogenic to humans" when used as directed, though a 2022 federal appeals court ordered the agency to redo parts of that assessment, which remains in process.

The courtroom has been harsher than the regulator: Bayer has paid settlements exceeding $10 billion over Roundup cancer claims while continuing to dispute causation, and it removed glyphosate from US residential lawn products in 2023, a litigation decision, not an EPA mandate. Residues in oats, cereal, and other foods remain legal within EPA tolerances.

Citation EPA registration review of glyphosate (interim decision 2020, under revision)

Products that commonly contain it

Glyphosate reaches consumers as residue, not as an ingredient. Testing most often finds it in:

Oats and oat cereals (from pre-harvest spraying)
Wheat products and bread
Legumes and chickpea products
Beer and wine (trace levels)
Conventional produce (low or no detectable residue in most samples)

What to look for on a label

No ingredient list will say glyphosate. Proxies that matter:

USDA Organic prohibits glyphosate use, the strongest label signal
"Glyphosate Residue Free" third-party certification exists on some oat brands
Residue levels found in testing are typically far below EPA and EU tolerances; dose matters

Or skip the squinting: paste the whole ingredient list into our checker and it flags everything in our database. Nothing you paste leaves your browser.

Frequently asked questions

Is glyphosate banned in Europe?

No. The EU renewed its approval in December 2023 for ten years (Implementing Regulation 2023/2660), with new use conditions. Some member states impose additional national restrictions.

Is glyphosate legal in the United States?

Yes. The EPA permits it and considers it not likely carcinogenic when used as directed, though a court ordered parts of that assessment redone. It remains the most-used US herbicide.

Does glyphosate cause cancer?

The experts disagree: IARC says "probably carcinogenic" (Group 2A, 2015); EFSA, ECHA, and EPA reviews of broader regulatory datasets conclude otherwise. Litigation has resolved cases, not the science.

Should I worry about glyphosate in oatmeal?

Detected residues in oat products are typically hundreds of times below regulatory tolerances. If you want to avoid it on principle, USDA Organic oats are the practical route.

Related ingredients

Primary sources

Last reviewed June 10, 2026 · How we assign statuses