Urinary biomonitoring of exposure to glyphosate and its metabolite amino-methyl phosphonic acid among farmers and non-farmers in Morocco.

Glyphosate, a widely used herbicide in global agriculture, poses potential health risks due to environmental and dietary exposure. This study evaluated urinary concentrations of glyphosate and its metabolite, amino-methyl phosphonic acid (AMPA), among farmers and non-farmers in Morocco's Fez-Meknes region, using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Glyphosate was detected in 57.14% of farmers, 35.41% of indirectly exposed residents, and 24% of controls, while AMPA was present in 5.35% of farmers only. Average glyphosate levels were 0.176μg/L in farmers, 0.098μg/L in indirectly exposed individuals, and 0.069μg/L in controls, with AMPA averaging 0.253μg/L in farmers. Sociodemographic factors, such as education level, farm residence, and herbicide storage, significantly influenced glyphosate levels, while reusing pesticide containers strongly correlated with elevated glyphosate and AMPA concentrations. Estimated daily intakes (EDIs), hazard quotients (HQs), and a hazard index (HI) were calculated to analyze the obtained data from a health risk perspective. Farmers had higher EDIGM values for AMPA (0.303µg/d/kg) and Glyphosate (0.140µg/d/kg) compared to the control group, which had significantly lower values of 0.110µg/d/kg for AMPA and 0.080µg/d/kg for Glyphosate. The HQs were calculated considering 0.5mg/kg BW/day as an acceptable daily intake (ADI), which EFSA has established as a health-based reference value for both analytes. The values obtained were lower than 1, indicating that the health risk from Glyphosate and AMPA exposure was considered acceptable for the studied population.