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The next asbestos? What do the Monsanto trials mean for the future of Roundup.
Protest march against Monsanto in Paris
It's been touted as the next asbestos and compared to the cover-ups by big tobacco companies last century, but agribusiness giant Monsanto insists Roundup doesn't cause cancer.
Three US juries disagree, and the company is facing 13,400 plaintiffs who claim the most commonly used herbicide in the world is the reason they have non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Key points:
- Roundup is the most commonly used herbicide in the world and its active ingredient is glyphosate
- Agribusiness giant Monsanto has lost three trials in the US over links between cancer and glyphosate
- It's been ordered to pay out billions of dollars in damages to four cancer patients, with thousands more plaintiffs awaiting trial
It's what's called a mass tort litigation, with lawsuits involving multiple plaintiffs against one defendant, in this case Monsanto, and involves multiple trials in different jurisdictions.
Unlike a class action, injuries suffered by the plaintiffs in mass torts aren't always the same; they are usually similar but can be wider ranging and individualised.
In the US, mass torts against pharmaceutical companies are the most common, but other well-known mass torts include cases like asbestos.
So far Monsanto has been ordered to pay four cancer patients, with the most recent verdict ordering a payout of $US2 billion ($2.89 billion). All the cases are expected to be appealed.
Here
Opinion ...
And this is the same company that wants the chemical sprayed en-masse on our food crops so that the weeds are suppressed and yields are increased.
Oh, why don't the plants die along with the weeds? Simples ... the plants, which we were to eat are genetically modified to withstand the powerfull effects of the herbicide.
Of course, the same company selling you the poison also owns the patent on the GM modified seed stock.
Fuck that shite.