Syngenta’s Monsanto moment
Five years ago the once seemingly invincible Monsanto Co. was dealt its first searing courtroom loss over allegations that its glyphosate weed killer causes cancer and Monsanto worked to hide the risks.
Five years ago the once seemingly invincible Monsanto Co. was dealt its first searing courtroom loss over allegations that its glyphosate weed killer causes cancer and Monsanto worked to hide the risks.
WAYNESBORO, Miss. — Wayne County, Mississippi, in a quiet southeast corner of the state, is home to about 20,000 people surrounded by forest and farmland. But Wayne distinguishes itself in two ways: it is home to a Sipcam Agro plant that processes the toxic herbicide paraquat. Within the US, the plant is the largest single emitter of paraquat.
When US regulators issued a 2019 assessment of the widely used farm chemical paraquat, they determined that even though multiple scientific studies linked the chemical to Parkinson’s disease, that work was outweighed by other studies that did not find such links. Overall, the weight of scientific evidence was “insufficient” to prove paraquat causes the brain disease, officials with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) declared.
Vermont this week became the first US state to ban the weed-killing pesticide paraquat, backed by lawmakers who cited concerns about research showing the chemical may cause the incurable brain ailment known as Parkinson’s disease.
New data is adding to regulatory concerns about the potential human health impacts of the weed killer paraquat, leading the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to seek more information from manufacturers of the pesticide.
When Illinois farmer Ron Niebruegge was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease at the age of 55, he was certain it must be a mistake. Niebruegge had always been healthy and active, someone who loved horseback riding and taking his wife dancing on weekend nights.
On the eve of the opening of what would have been a bellwether US trial over allegations that a widely used weed killer causes Parkinson’s disease, paraquat-maker Syngenta reached a settlement with the retired landscaper who blamed the company for his diagnosis with the incurable brain disease.
Vermont this week became the first US state to ban paraquat, a widely used herbicide that researchers have linked to an increased risk of Parkinson’s disease.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin sparked news stories around the US last week when he tweeted that the agency had made the “proactive decision to freshly reassess” the safety of the weed killer paraquat, a controversial pesticide widely used by farmers that is linked to Parkinson’s disease.