He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Another defeat came for Monsanto (today Bayern). Last September, the multinational asked the California Supreme Court to review the case involving Alva and Alberta Pilliod, an elderly couple who fell ill with cancer due to exposure to glyphosate contained in the infamous pesticide Roundup, produced by Monsanto. But the Supreme Court rejected the request, confirming the $ 86,2 million compensation to the couple. It is one of the most important trials against the German giant that acquired Monsanto for 63 billion dollars in 2018.
However, Bayer has again indicated that it disagrees with the High Court's decision:
"We continue to strongly support Roundup's security, a position supported by the assessments of regulatory experts around the world and the crushing weight of four decades of vast science," the company said in a statement.
For his part, Brent Wisner - one of the Pilliod lawyers - reiterated that the verdict "is based on solid science and on a unanimous law", urging the company to stop making unnecessary appeals.
The story of Alva and Alberta Pilliod
Alva and Alberta Pilliod live in Livermore, California and have used Roundup to remove weeds in their homes since 1982 for over 30 years. In 2013 came the diagnosis for Alva: non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a form of lymphatic cancer; while Alberta was diagnosed with the same disease four years later.
The two were unaware of all the risks associated with the use of the glyphosate-based herbicide and only stopped using the product in 2016 after becoming aware of cancer cases associated with exposure to the substance.
According to the Court of Appeal, Monsanto is to blame for knowingly marketing a highly harmful product, without making consumers aware of the risks. Thanks to the ruling of the California Court of Appeals, finally Alva and Alberta will be able to receive important compensation, even if unfortunately no one will be able to give it back to them.
Our main goal was to try to get Monsanto to warn people that glyphosate is dangerous. - commented Alberta Pilliod after learning of the verdict - Money is important but the greatest victory was to take that junk off the shelves so that other people do not have to go through what we have been through. My life was definitely shortened by the cancer I got from Roundup.
The cause of the Pilliods, along with many others, prompted the multinational to quit to sell glyphosate-based pesticides by 2023 and in the meantime, the company has earmarked about $ 2 billion for other compensation claims from people who have become ill with cancer as a result of using their health-damaging substances.
Although several studies have now confirmed how dangerous glyphosate is both for the environment and for health, online products that contain it (such as the controversial Roundup) are easily available on e-commerce sites such as eBay or Amazon. Anyone can buy it and, of course, no one monitors its use.
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Source: San Francisco Chronicle
Read also:
- US judge saves glyphosate: no label on the danger, because "it is not carcinogenic"
- Glyphosate, the data "are not reliable": EFSA's assessment is based on imperfect science (at the service of lobbies)
- Glyphosate: The safety studies that have allowed its use in Europe are not reliable
- Germany banned glyphosate starting in 2024: the historic law that protects insects from pesticides (and more)
