Monsanto cannot claim it is protected from liability by federal preemption laws, because it did not try to update Roundup warning labels, appeals court ruled.
Prenatal exposure to Roundup had a significant impact on infants who were already expected to be low birth weight, and on babies in disadvantaged communities.
Even short-term Roundup exposure led to brain inflammation, anxiety and early death in mice test subjects, researchers warn.
Bayer replaced glyphosate in Roundup amid concerns about the cancer risks. However, chemicals now used in reformulated Roundup may be 45 times more toxic.
Monsanto and Bayer have lost four out of six Roundup lawsuit trials held in Pennsylvania state court, each involving non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma allegedly caused by the controversial weed killer.
Verdict comes as Bayer and its Monsanto subsidiary prepare to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in the nationwide Roundup litigation.
Ruling contradicts an opinion issued by the Eleventh Circuit earlier this year, setting the stage for U.S. Supreme Court to potentially decide whether Roundup lawsuits can move forward over non-Hodgkin's lymphoma risks
Bayer officials want to prevent states from stepping in to protect consumers when they feel the EPA has failed to warn them of Roundup cancer risks.
Proposed legislation that would enact uniform pesticide labeling may prevent failure to warn lawsuits from being pursued under state laws, which may have more stringent label standards than the EPA.
Researchers warn that glyphosate in Roundup could deteriorate the blood testes barrier, potentially contributing to infertility or causing DNA damage that could be passed to children.
