The European Union on Monday approved a five-year extension to the use of the weed killer glyphosate, in a move that failed to satisfy either environmentalists or farmers and pitted Germany against France. Malta was among nine member states who voted against.

After a drawn-out process, the EU backed the extension with a qualified majority and was able to beat a mid-December deadline when the current license expires.

Germany put its weight behind the extension, a move that divided the caretaker government in Berlin and could have repercussions on Chancellor Angela Merkel's negotiations to form a grand coalition between her conservative bloc and the center-left Socialist Democrats.

France remained opposed and there was anger with the outcome.

"This is Black Monday for health," French European Parliament deputy Yannick Jadot told BFM TV.

But President Emmanuel Macron said he tasked the government "to take the necessary measures so that the use of glyphosate is forbidden in France as soon as alternatives are found, and at the latest in three years."

Environmentalists had hoped on an immediate ban since they claim that the weed killer, used in chemical giant Monsanto's popular Roundup herbicide, is linked to cancer. The World Health Organization's cancer agency said in 2015 that the weed killer is "probably carcinogenic" to humans.

"The decision taken today by a narrow qualified majority of member states has locked the EU into another five years of toxic agriculture," said Green member of the European Parliament Bart Staes. "This is a dark day for consumers, farmers and the environment."

Many farmers, who say the substance is safe, had wanted a 15-year extension. EU nations long failed to find a compromise amid conflicting health reports.

Despite welcoming the limited extension, the president of the EU's Copa-Cogeca farmer association, Pekka Pesonen, insisted glyphosate "should have been re-authorized for 15 years after it was given a positive assessment by both the European Food Safety Authority and the European Chemicals Agency."

Banning glyphosate outright would have shaken Europe's agriculture sector, since it is so widely used.

Friends of the Earth Malta said the EU had failed to seize an opportunity to end glyphosate.

“Glyphosate damages nature, probably causes cancer, and props up an industrial farming system that is degrading the land we need to feed ourselves. The approval, even if only for five years, is a missed opportunity to get rid of this risky weedkiller and start to get farmers off the chemical treadmill. Five more years of glyphosate will put our health and environment at risk, and is a major setback to more sustainable farming methods,” it said.

Commenting on Malta’s vote against the extension, FoE said: “This announcement shows responsibility from government’s side as it has consistently chosen to listen to the concerns of experts and individuals who have demanded that our fields, streets and gardens would be free from this risky weed killer.”