In the long list of phytosanitary products, there is a particularly well-known herbicide: glyphosate.When was this controversial weed killer discovered?It is a weedkiller for some, a poison for others, it invades the soil and public debates and is called glyphosate.This molecule was created in 1950, thanks to the Swiss chemist Henri Martin.At that time, he synthesized glyphosate for the first time and baptized it "N-phosphonomethyl-glycine".When discovered, the molecule was used to descale boilers and pipes.Then in 1970, the chemist John Franz discovers a new use for it... On contact with it, all plants die, especially weeds.It is a non-selective herbicide.In view of its effectiveness, the Monsanto company decided to patent it and marketed it in 1974, under the Roundup brand.First in Malaysia for rubber crops, then in the United Kingdom for wheat.Sales then explode.It quickly became the most widely used herbicide in the world.But it is so powerful that it destroys both weeds and cultivated grains.In the 1990s, Monsanto developed transgenic, glyphosate-resistant plants called "roundup ready", such as "roundup ready" soybeans, followed by corn, cotton, beets and rapeseed.It is so widespread that it is even found in 99.8% of urine, according to a test organized by a German laboratory on more than 6,000 people.Glyphosate has been considered "possibly carcinogenic" since 2015, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a WHO agency.Other experts question this analysis and the debate around the dangerousness of glyphosate is still not closed.To not miss any health information, subscribe to our newsletter!