- Bayer, the maker of the world’s most popular weed killer, says it could stop producing Roundup. It comes after the company has faced billions of dollars in lawsuits over the herbicide’s potential for causing cancer.
- The Environmental Protection Agency says Roundup does not have to have a warning on it saying it could cause cancer.
- Bayer currently produces about 40% of the world’s glyphosate, which is widely used by commercial farmers to protect their crops.
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The world’s most popular weed killer could soon be no more.
Bayer says it could stop making Roundup unless it gets court protection against lawsuits blaming it for causing cancer.
What’s the issue?
In recent years, Bayer has paid out more than $10 billion to settle lawsuits claiming Roundup, which utilizes the herbicide glyphosate, causes cancer. There are also about 67,000 cases still pending and Bayer has set aside another $16 billion for those.
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Bayer currently produces about 40% of the world’s glyphosate, which is widely used by commercial farmers to protect their crops.
What’s Bayer saying?
Bayer maintains Roundup is safe, pointing to reviews from the Environmental Protection Agency and other regulators saying so.
Just this month, Bayer petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to limit legal claims against Roundup, arguing consumers should not be able to sue the company based on state laws saying it needs to warn about potential cancer risks since the EPA, a federal entity, has determined glyphosate does not require a cancer warning.
Bayer’s CEO told the Wall Street Journal if his company stops producing glyphosate no American company would be willing to take on the liability of replacing it. That would leave U.S. farmers reliant on imported glyphosate from China.
Editor’s note: A previous version of this article called Roundup a pesticide, which kills pests. Roundup is a herbicide, which kills weeds and grasses. This article has been updated to reflect that designation, and Straight Arrow News deeply regrets this error.