Another man with cancer takes Monsanto to court and defeats it. The agrochemical giant was sentenced to pay 80 million dollars to the man, who for years had used Roundup products and in particular glyphosate
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves him
Another man with cancer takes Monsanto to court and defeats it. The agrochemical giant was sentenced to pay 80 million dollars to the man, who had used the products for years Roundup and in particular the glyphosate.
After the story that had caused the most stir, that of Lee Johnson also suffering from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, another verdict hangs in favor of those who have contracted a tumor using glyphosate and co. In recent days, a San Francisco jury has delivered its verdict in favor of 70-year-old Edwin Hardeman, who took Bayer-Monsanto to court for the same reason as Lee.
The man had used Roundup products for years to treat poison oak and weed overgrowth on his property.
Wednesday's verdict concludes the second of two phases of the trial. Last week, the jury issued an initial verdict arguing that the herbicide was a "substantial factor" in causing Mr. Hardeman's cancer. In the second phase, the jury ruled that Monsanto was responsible for the role played by its herbicide. In particular, the accusation concerns the fact that the product used lacked a label capable of warning about the risk of cancer. For this she was sentenced to pay more than 80 million dollars in damages (about 71 million euros).
Ken Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group (EWG), claims the jury decided in favor of Mr. Hardeman because Bayer-Monsanto hid Roundup's carcinogenic properties and manipulated the science.
The verdict, delivered to the United States District Court in San Francisco, is one milestone in the public debate on the health effects of Roundup and its active ingredient, the glyphosate, the most used herbicide in the world. As hoped for in Lee's case, this too could pave the way for new legal disputes against Monsanto. The latter is currently involved in 11 thousand cases. "This case could help determine the fate of other lawsuits," Hardeman's lawyers say.
As always, Bayer has already made it known that it will appeal against the jury's decision:
"The verdict in this trial has no impact on future cases and evidence, as each has their own factual and legal circumstances," the company said.
According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer, a branch of the World Health Organization, glyphosate, a pesticide and herbicide best known as an ingredient in Roundup, is a probable human carcinogen.
For Monsanto and Bayer, however, various studies have shown its safety.
"We are disappointed with the jury's decision, but this verdict does not change the weight of more than four decades of extensive science and the conclusions of regulators around the world that support the safety of our glyphosate-based herbicides and that they are not carcinogenic," he said. said Bayer. .
Jennifer Moore, one of the man's lawyers, he replied claiming that Monsanto has continually ignored scientific studies showing Roundup's harmful effects on health.
“The evidence that Roundup can cause non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is overwhelming. Despite this, Monsanto continues to deny it ”.
The hope is that this time we can go all the way and that man can have justice.
READ also:
- Lee Johnson accepts compensation: victory (halfway) against Monsanto and glyphosate
- Monsanto, overturned the outcome of the historic sentence. New trial on glyphosate is underway
- Bayer in trouble: sharp decline in profits and over 11 thousand lawsuits against glyphosate
Francesca Mancuso
