Ice cream sold under the Ben & Jerry’s brand contains traces of the weedkiller glyphosate, tests have revealed.

The chemical which is best known under the brand name Roundup is widely used on food crops, particularly in GM farming, around the world.

Twelve out of 14 samples of the ice cream bought across Europe were positive for glyphosate.

Three of these were bought in the UK – Half Baked cookie dough and chocolate ice cream, Peanut Butter, and Chocolate Fudge Brownie.

Contamination is thought to have come from the ingredients, such as wheat in cookie dough, used to flavour the ice cream.

The levels were very low and well below the levels set by food safety authorities in the US and Europe.

However glyphosate is at the centre of controversy around the world with some studies suggesting it is a cancer risk.