Glyphosate Use in States and Historic U.S. Trends (2026)

The Rise of Glyphosate: From Agricultural Staple to Controversial Herbicide

Glyphosate was first discovered in 1950 and identified as an herbicide by Monsanto in 1970, leading to the launch of Roundup in 1974. It quickly became a cornerstone of modern agricultural practices due to its broad-spectrum application. Its usage escalated even further with the development of genetically modified (GM) crops resistant to glyphosate. For decades, regulatory bodies considered glyphosate to have low hazard potential to mammals. However, in 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic”, sparking a global debate. This stance contrasted with evaluations by the European Union (EU) and joint assessments by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which did not find a carcinogenic link.