From contestation to accountability in EU pesticides regulation? The case of Glyphosate

Pesticides governance is at the centre of a thick web of interests and values. The use of pesticides is coessential to the prevailing model of agricultural production, thus playing an important role in the provision of stable food supplies globally. Pesticides are also a highly remunerative business: in 2019, the global pesticides market has reached a value of nearly 84.5 billion $. 1On the other hand, pesticides are chemical compounds that may pose substantial risks to both human health and the environment, including biodiversity. 2Hence, their regulation entails striking a delicate balance between political, economic and public health and environmental considerations. Critically, all three are heavily informed by scientific evidence, with the consequence that regulatory-scientific expertise plays a key role in pesticides’ legal and regulatory governance, in particular when it comes to their risk assessment.