Contentious herbicide under scrutiny - Bayer required to pay considerably lesser glyphosate compensation: 400 million less than the initial two billion.
A US Pennsylvania court has slashed the $2 billion punishment against Bayer-owned Monsanto in a glyphosate dispute down to $400,000. Monsanto still plans to contest the ruling. The firm deemed the legal judgment "seriously flawed" that calls for correction.
Monsanto linked to cancer by plaintiffs
In this case, a Philadelphia court ordered in January that Monsanto, now a Bayer subsidiary, should pay John McKivison, who suffers from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (a type of cancer), $2.25 billion (€2.1 billion) over its glyphosate-laden weed killer "Roundup". Judge Susan Schulman revised the ruling to $400,000 at Monsanto's request. McKivison holds "Roundup" accountable for his cancer.
Bayer rebutted in a statement that the jury was "deceived and incited" and led to "unconstitutionally high damae awards". Monsanto remains unconvinced that glyphosate is carcinogenic. The matter has been a point of contention in science for years. The EU Commission approved the herbicide for another ten years in November.
Monsanto: the costly acquisition
Bayer's taken over Monsanto, the "Roundup" manufacturer, for €63 billion in 2018. The firm has been facing legal action over "Roundup" since its acquisition. Monsanto has been summoned to pay damages in several glyphosate cases, while having been acquitted in others. Various lawsuits have been mutually settled. Bayer has reportedly reserved €16 billion for the glyphosate lawsuits.
"Although the court lowered the unconstitutionally high damage award, we find the court's decision contentious," the company declared on March 23. The trial featured critical errors and should be reevaluated. Added to this, Bayer highlighted that the company had won 14 of the most recent 20 cases. Moreover, the majority of the lawsuits were settled, it was added.
The glyphosate controversy over "Roundup" became a critical issue for Bayer after the $60 billion acquisition of US company Monsanto in 2018. The first lawsuit against the DAX firm was delivered in the same year. This spurs a flurry of legal actions in the United States.
Glyphosate trials have cost Bayer €13 billion
In 2020, Bayer introduced a €1 billion program to clear most of the glyphosate litigation. A significant portion of cases has been settled, but perils persist. As of January, around 54,000 of the 165,000 cases remained. The glyphosate lawsuit trend has already caused Bayer €13 billion in expenses.
Read also:
- Despite the EU Commission approving the use of glyphosate for another decade, the controversy surrounding Bayer's acquisition of Monsanto and the herbicide's link to cancer continues to be a contentious issue in the chemistry industry in Germany.
- In the aftermath of the US court reducing the $2 billion compensation against Bayer-owned Monsanto in a glyphosate dispute down to $400,000, Bayer has reserved €16 billion for potential glyphosate lawsuits in the pharmaceuticals sector in Pennsylvania, USA.
- The process of producing glyphosate, a key ingredient in Monsanto's 'Roundup' weed killer, has come under scrutiny in the agriculture sector, as multiple trials related to the herbicide's alleged contribution to cancer have cost Bayer €13 billion.
- Critics argue that the German pharmaceutical giant Bayer, which took over Monsanto for €63 billion in 2018, should be held accountable for the health implications arising from glyphosate usage, as Monsanto remains unconvinced that the chemical is carcinogenic.
- However, many glyphosate lawsuits have been settled out of court, with Bayer having won 14 of the last 20 trials while still facing legal action in various countries, including Germany and the USA, reflecting the complexity of the glyphosate controversy in the global chemistry and pharmaceuticals industries.
