AbstractThe challenges of resistance to antibiotics and resistance to herbicides have much in common. Antibiotic resistance became a risk in the 1950s, but a concerted global effort to manage it did not begin until after 2000. Widespread herbicide use began during the 1950s and was soon followed by an unabated rise in resistance. Here, we examine what lessons for combatting herbicide resistance could be learnt from the global, coordinated efforts of all stakeholders to avert the antibiotic resistance crisis. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.