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Virtual and augmented reality are increasingly used in a wide variety of fields including healthcare, training, real estate, safety and leisure. In parallel with this deployment, ANSES decided to take a closer look at the impact of the population's exposure to these emerging technologies and the possible associated health effects. It is now calling for users to observe a few good practices to limit the adverse effects associated with these new uses. This expert appraisal follows on from earlier work by the Agency, which for several years has been studying the health impact of new digital technologies – 3D , screens , etc. – in a world where their applications are multiplying and uses are constantly evolving.

As glyphosate's approval in the European Union expires at the end of 2022, any future use requires this herbicidal active substance to undergo a new assessment of the risks to humans and the environment. A group of four rapporteur Member States (France, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden) was appointed to carry out the first step of this re-assessment, in accordance with European legislation*. In the interests of transparency, this group, known as the Assessment Group on Glyphosate (AGG), has been publishing information on the most significant advances in this process since the work began in 2019 . On 15 June, to coincide with submission of the draft renewal assessment report to the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA), the AGG published an online summary of the process and the main results of its assessment, which is the first step. At the same time, the European agencies announced that they will publish the draft report and launch a public consultation on it in September. It will also be peer reviewed by experts from other Member States. In accordance with EU legislation, following this consultation and any further data provided later, the preliminary report may be revised and a final report published. The European Commission will then draw on the findings of the assessments conducted by EFSA and ECHA to propose the possible renewal of glyphosate's approval to Member States in 2022. Read the summary of the draft report on the web page of the Assessment Group on Glyphosate. Find out more about ANSES and the assessments conducted on glyphosate and the plant protection products containing this active substance. For any questions on the draft report and the assessment process, contact: AGG@ec.europa.eu * Regulation (EU) No 686/2012 as amended designating the rapporteur Member States

In an update of its 2018 Opinion on alternatives to neonicotinoids, ANSES identified 22 solutions for controlling aphids and yellowing disease in sugar beet crops. These control measures may take over from neonicotinoid products, which have been banned since 2018 but whose use was reintroduced for beet seed treatments under a waiver in 2020. These alternative solutions, whose effectiveness is good but insufficient when they are used alone, will require an integrated control approach or even a change in cultivation practices to be sufficiently effective.