The vote by member states on a proposal for the renewal of the approval of glyphosate for 10 years has been delayed yet again today.

This is the second time that the vote has been delayed; a similar decision was taken earlier this month.

The current approval of glyphosate expires on December 15, 2017. The Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed reportedly did not hold a vote on the proposal during the meeting.

It is believed a date for the next meeting of the committee will be announced shortly.

The debate over glyphosate – which is the key ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup – has been raging on for months now. An 18-month extension was granted by the EU in June 2016 so further scientific studies could be carried out.

Yesterday, the European Parliament voted to back a full ban on glyphosate-based herbicides by December 2022. A total of 355 MEPs voted in favour of a ban, with 204 against and 111 abstentions.

As well as voting in favour of a full ban, the parliament was of the opinion that the EU should draw up plans to phase out glyphosae – starting with a complete ban on household use and a ban in use for farming when biological alternatives work well for weed control.

It is believed that an initial round of votes on whether to back the proposal to renew glyphosate’s licence for an additional 10 years in the EU failed to attract sufficient support, according to Politico.

Politico, added that a total of 16 countries voted in favour of the proposal. These are thought to include the Republic of Ireland, the UK, Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Spain, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Finland.

It is understood that Germany and Portugal abstained from the vote, while the remaining countries – including France and Italy – voted against the renewal.