Vietnam has prohibited the import of all types of herbicides containing glyphosate following the ruling of a United States court earlier this week.

The Plant Protection Department under Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has just issued a document requiring all organizations and individuals to stop importing herbicides that contain an active ingredient called glyphosate.

The judges in a San Francisco federal court on Tuesday found Roundup to be responsible for the cancer of California resident Edwin Hardeman.

Roundup is a glyphosate-based weed killer produced by Germany-based Bayer AG and is widely used across the world.

During an interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper on Saturday, Hoang Trung, head of the Plant Protection Department, said that glyphosate-based herbicides are commonly imported and sold in Vietnam.

“We have banned the import of the kind of weed killer following the U.S. judges’ conclusion,” Trung stated.

The ban, however, only affects new orders, as those shipments under contracts that have already been signed are still allowed to be imported.

“Glyphosate will also be listed as a prohibited substance in Vietnam in the coming time,” the official continued.

Local authorities need to follow certain procedures to ban a chemical that was previously permitted for circulation in the country.

The San Francisco federal court will provide necessary evidence for Vietnam to expedite this process, he elaborated.

In the document, the Plant Protection Department also asked local businesses to report the sale and inventory of glyphosate-based weed killers prior to March 30.

The information will help ensure human health and protect the environment and ecosystem, as well as provide the basis for the agriculture ministry to implement suitable policies to manage the herbicides, according to the department.

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