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What a ban on pre-harvest glyphosate could mean for farmers

United Kingdom
Farm Practices
pesticide reduction
arable
Glyphosate

A practical Q&A explaining pre-harvest glyphosate use, the case for change, and how farmers can prepare for expected policy shifts under the upcoming UK-EU SPS agreement. 

As the UK Government moves towards a new sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) agreement with the EU covering the trade and movement of plants, plant products, animals, animal products, feed and food, significant changes to agricultural practice are expected. The Government’s stated intention is for this agreement to take effect in mid-2027, and it is widely anticipated that this will include the prohibition of glyphosate use as a pre-harvest desiccant, aligning with EU changes to permitted glyphosate use taken in 2023.

In light of this, farmers need clarity and time to prepare for what would be a major shift in crop management practices. This Q&A sets out the key issues around pre-harvest desiccation, including why it is used, how glyphosate works, the associated risks, and how farming systems operate in the EU where restrictions already apply.  

As a farmers’ network, we support a ban on the use of glyphosate as a pre-harvest desiccant, provided there is a realistic transition period of at least one year following the SPS agreement. This would allow farmers to adapt practices, explore and invest in alternatives, and maintain food production resilience during what will be a significant period of change for the sector.

Q&A

  • In the UK, crops like wheat, barley, and oilseed rape are often sprayed before harvest to speed up drying and control weeds in unpredictable, often wet summer weather. Desiccation (the process of drying something out by removing moisture) forces the crop and any green weeds to die and dry out simultaneously, preventing yields from rotting in the field.

    • Crops can ripen unevenly (especially oilseed rape). Desiccation ensures the entire field reaches an optimum and consistent moisture level for combining, storage and processing.

    • Green, living weeds can place strain on combine harvesters. Drying them out can prevent breakdowns and reduce fuel consumption.

    • Desiccation also provides a head start on clearing weeds for the following planting season.  

    Glyphosate is currently the chemical of choice for many farmers because it is a systemic herbicide that travels through the entire plant, drying the crop out evenly for a faster and more consistent and efficient harvest.  

  • The World Health Organisation’s (WHO) cancer research agency, IARC, has classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” and this has driven significant public concern. Major regulatory bodies, however, including the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), have concluded that glyphosate is not likely to pose a carcinogenic risk to humans at exposure levels typical of approved agricultural and domestic use. 

    The scientific literature overall remains mixed at the margins, with ongoing debate about interpretation of certain epidemiological studies and animal data, and no consistent consensus of safety at realistic exposure levels. However, a few historically influential papers that supported a “no cancer risk” position have recently come under scrutiny for transparency and direct chemical  industry involvement. (You can read more about the case here).  

  • In the EU, glyphosate is no longer permitted as a pre-harvest desiccant, though it can still be used for weed control in some situations. They usually rely on a mix of methods:

    • Most farmers opt for natural ripening, then harvest when moisture is low enough. This is the simplest substitute, but it depends heavily on weather and crop uniformity.

    • Another approach is swathing or windrowing, where the crop is cut and left to dry before combining. This is used in some crops, but it is more labour-intensive and more weather-sensitive.

    • Farmers opt for better agronomy earlier in the season, such as variety choice, drilling date, and weed control, so the crop is more even and less in need of pre-harvest drying.

    • In some cases other desiccant or crop-topping products or techniques (such as electrothermal methods) are used but the exact options vary by crop and local authorisation, and they are not a direct one-for-one replacement for glyphosate.

    Modern farming in the EU still differs from the pre-glyphosate area because of access to different crop varieties, machinery, storage, and market expectations.

  • Modern swathers (or windrowers) are designed to cut crops and lay them into a windrow efficiently, helping farms cover large areas in a relatively short time. Larger machines can be fitted with wide headers and technology that improves cutting consistency, output, and operator efficiency.

    For larger arable farms, modern self-propelled, high-horsepower swathers can indeed handle significant acreage, with wide cutting widths and high daily field capacity. They are already widely used in large-scale hay and small-grain systems where speed, uniform windrows, and reduced drying time are important.

    However, it is important to note that adopting this approach at scale often requires substantial capital investment. Many farms would need to invest in new machinery or upgrade their existing fleet to maintain current levels of efficiency, particularly if swathing becomes a more central part of pre-harvest management.

  • The need for low moisture is real and scientific: it’s about preventing mould, mycotoxins, sprouting, pests, and economic loss, all things that happen when grain is stored too wet.

    • Moisture is a key growth factor for bacteria and fungi. It can cause decay and heat buildup in the grain store. It can also produce mycotoxins, which are toxic to humans and animals and can cause serious health problems.

    • When mature grain absorbs moisture, it can also start to germinate, reducing the overall grain quality 

    • High humidity and moisture also allow insects and mites to thrive in stored grain.  

  • It is important to note that changes to pesticides availability and permitted uses in the UK or EU are not part of any formal policy to move agriculture entirely to organic production. However, the glyphosate debate has brought organic systems into greater focus.

    In practice, a complete global transition to organic farming without any other changes in diet, land use, or food systems would likely reduce overall agriculture yields and therefore total food availability. However, it is difficult to translate this directly into food security outcomes. Globally, we currently produce more calories than population levels need, but these are not distributed evenly. 

    Organic farming can play a meaningful role in food security, but most evidence suggests this is most realistic when it is part of a broader system change - including more nature-friendly and low-input farming practices, shifts in diets towards more plant-based foods (particularly fruit, vegetables, and pulses), reductions in food waste, and more strategic land use decisions.

  • Food prices in the EU have not risen noticeably because of the ban on pre-harvest glyphosate as a distinct, traceable effect. The EU restricted its use as a pre-harvest drying agent in 2023. There is no evidence of a broad, EU-wide food-price spike directly attributable to this specific restriction. It is therefore unlikely that food prices will rise in the UK because of the ban as a pre-harvest dessicate.

  • The cropping choices farmers make are informed by a complex array of factors. The changes coming through EU alignment will form part of this decision-making mix and will likely lead to shifts in cropping/production choices in places.

    Oilseed rape production currently uses high levels of glyphosate for pre-harvest dessication. In recent years UK production levels have been impacted by a range of factors such as the stem flea beetle, poor weather and removal of neonicotinoids, which have led to significant reductions in UK output. However, current predictions are that UK planting levels will increase by over 25% in 2026/27, compared to 2025/26, indicating that changes in permitted glyphosate use will not, on their own, lead to lower production levels. (see reference)

  • At the NFFN, we are calling for a ban on using glyphosate as a pre-harvest desiccant as we believe farming has a key role to play in reducing our exposure to harmful chemicals. However, we know that this will be challenging for many farmers as they are working in systems which have become very reliant on chemicals, so just stopping glyphosate use overnight is not an option.

    Therefore, we're calling for a managed transition to phase out the use of glyphosate as a pre-harvest desiccant. We need to ensure farmers aren't left with crops they can't sell, and we need practical alternatives to glyphosate to dry crops, especially in wetter areas of the UK, as well as investment in the necessary infrastructure. 

    It is also vital that we have alignment on trade, so UK farmers working to high environmental standards aren't undercut by imports from elsewhere produced to lower standards. We support bringing the UK in line with the EU, which has a more robust approach to preventing harm to public health and the environment from chemicals, as a good first step.

  • Certainty
    Farmers need clarity on the details of the new rules as early as possible, in order to inform cropping decisions for the coming seasons. In order to accommodate cropping choices already made this year, NFFN is advocating that glyphosate use is permitted for the 2027 harvest window as a short-term transitional measure.

    Financial support to reduce pesticide use
    Agri-environment schemes play a key role in supporting a transition to nature-friendly production systems and can incentivise whole-farm approaches, such as robust Integrated Pest Management. It’s vital that schemes such as SFI in England and SFS in Wales effectively support joined-up IPM actions, rather than isolated measures.

    Knowledge exchange on non chemical management approaches
    Impacted farmers will need to learn and adopt new management approaches and many learn most effectively from other farmers. It will be vital that appropriate support is available for peer-to-peer learning on non-chemical pest and weed control, as well as harvest management without chemical desiccants.

    Infrastructure and market development
    As highlighted above, pre-harvest desiccation without glyphosate is feasible, but it relies on access to machinery and equipment that many farmers currently do not have. There are currently not enough swathers in the UK to manage the hectares that are currently desiccated by glyphosate, so the market will need time to respond to increased demand. Public policy could support this transition by incentivising investment in relevant machinery, including time-limited support for crops managed through mechanical alternatives, and by enabling shared ownership or collaborative machinery pools.

    Fairness in trade deals
    Alignment with EU rules could help the UK farming sector maintain and potentially grow access to its nearest trading bloc, helping to stabilise markets following recent trade disruption. More broadly, it is important that UK trade agreements do not allow the import of products produced to lower standards, including those where glyphosate has been used as a pre-harvest desiccant.


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