(Bloomberg) -- The European Commission proposed extending the use of the contentious pesticide glyphosate for 10 years, setting up a fierce debate in the coming months over a key ingredient in Bayer AG’s popular weedkiller Roundup.  

The commission — the EU’s executive — will send the proposal to the bloc’s 27 member states to discuss on Friday, with a vote expected Oct. 13, according to a senior commission official. The decision-making process is expected to conclude by Dec. 15 when the current license expires, the official said.

While the herbicide allows farmers to tackle weeds in cereal crops, vineyards and orchards, it has been dogged by concerns about its impact on nature and human health. The European Food Safety Authority said in July it found no “critical areas of concern” with one of the world’s most widely used weedkillers, prompting the commission’s proposal. However, the agency said at the time that data gaps remain in some areas. 

Environmental groups have called for the EU to reject re-approval. 

“The regulators are moving full speed without listening to citizens’ concerns and independent science,” Angeliki Lysimachou, head of science and policy at Pesticide Action Network Europe, said in a statement. “Industry interests clearly prevail over health and the environment.”

The EU last extended permission to keep glyphosate on the market in 2017 for five years, with a further one-year extension in December. 

A 10-year approval would be “longer than anticipated,” said Sebastian Bray, an analyst at investment bank Berenberg, though he indicated that the timeline wasn’t surprising. “I think the EU Commission would like to avoid a highly politicized and time-consuming discussion on reapproval every five years.” 

--With assistance from Áine Quinn.

(Updates throughout with additional details.)

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