The Wait for a Decision on Glyphosate Cancer Case Ruling

Farmers could learn within the next month whether additional lawsuits may move forward about claims that agricultural pesticides cause cancer. The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case in April that could have broad implications in the search for answers about what is causing an increase in cancer diagnoses in certain parts of the country. It would also impact companies that make pesticides and herbicides, and agricultural producers who rely on weed and pest killers on their farms.

A Missouri gardener named John Durnell sued Monsanto in 2019 in his state’s court. Durnell alleged in the suit that he developed non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a blood cancer, after using Roundup, a glyphosate-based weedkiller. His lawsuit contends that Monsanto should have warned him of the risk.

A Missouri state court ruled in Durnell’s favor and awarded him $1.25 million in compensatory damages.

Bayer bought Monsanto in 2018. The company appealed the Missouri court’s ruling.

Cancer claims about glyphosate

There are disputed claims about whether glyphosate could cause cancer. The Environmental Protection Agency requires no labeling in glyphosate that warns of the product causing cancer.

However, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans” in 2015.

Glyphosate is a highly effective herbicide that kills weeds. It is relatively plentiful and inexpensive and is a popular choice for many corn, cotton, soybean, and sugar beet farmers.

Monsanto/Bayer paid billions to settle glyphosate cancer claims

Dunwell’s lawsuit against Monsanto/Bayer is one of more than 100,000 in the United States, claiming that the company failed to warn users that its product could cause cancer after exposure.

Many of those claims came from consumers who used the product around their homes. The company has already paid out billions to settle some of those lawsuits.

And it no longer uses glyphosate in its consumer versions.

Are cancer cases higher in farm counties?

Investigate Midwest analyzed cancer rates in the 500 counties that have the highest pesticide use per square mile.

It found, “A map of U.S. counties with the highest cancer rates often mirrors the regions with the highest pesticide use. Of the 500 counties with the highest pesticide use per square mile, 60% of those counties also had cancer rates higher than the national average of 460 cases per 100,000 people, according to an Investigate Midwest analysis of data from both the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Cancer Institute.”

Chemical & Engineering News pointed out that concerns about glyphosate are not divided on traditional political party lines.

“The case is not a neatly partisan issue. A few hundred protesters opposed to Bayer gathered outside the court for what they called a “People vs. Poison” rally. The group included prominent Make America Healthy Again activists and influencers as well as environmentalists, farmers, and members of Congress from both parties,” the article stated.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order in February that prioritized U.S. production of glyphosate. The administration stated that access to the herbicide is critical to national security.

The order drew praise from the Texas Farm Bureau:

“We appreciate President Trump and his administration for listening to producers and recognizing that food security is national security. This action helps protect Texas farmers’ and ranchers’ ability to continue producing the safest food and fiber that sustain our state and nation.”

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