January 30, 2017 — A judge in California has paved the way for the state to require warnings about the risk of cancer from Monsanto’s weed and grass-killer Roundup.
Back in September 2015, California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) proposed adding glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, to a list of carcinogens.
Monsanto filed a lawsuit over the proposed cancer warnings in January 2016. Last week, Fresno County Superior Court Judge Kristi Kapetan tentatively ruled against the company.
State officials are waiting for the lawsuit to be formally dismissed before they move forward with the warnings. California would be the first state to require Monsanto to warn that Roundup is a carcinogen.
Monsanto denies any link between Roundup and cancer. Lawyers for the company have vowed to appeal the decision. Approximately 46 lawsuits have been filed for people with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
One lawsuit was filed by Teri McCall, the widow of a California farmer who died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2015. He used a backpack to spray Roundup on their 20-acre avocado and apple farm for 30 years.
She says warnings about cancer might have saved his life. “I just don’t think my husband would have taken that risk if he had known,” she said.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) originally classified glyphosate as “possibly carcinogenic” in 1985, but reversed its decision in 1991 with little explanation. The EPA now says glyphosate has “low toxicity.” In 2013, the EPA also significantly boosted limits on spraying and food-residues — the same year Congress passed the Monsanto Protection Act.
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The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Roundup induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Toxic Chemical Exposure Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
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