Bayer agrees to pay $10 billion to settle Roundup cancer lawsuits

July 2, 2020

The company that produces Roundup, one of the world’s most popular weed killers, agreed to a $10 billion payment to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits filed against it.

Bayer AG, the parent company of Bayer Crop Science, formerly known as Monsanto Co., said the payment would settle about 75% of the approximately 125,000 claims against the company.

The lawsuits claimed exposure to glyphosate, the main chemical in Roundup, led to the development of a type of cancer that starts in the body’s immune system, known as non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

The settlement allows the company to address future potential litigation without an admission of liability or wrongdoing.

The company has long denied a link between the chemical and the disease. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a controversial interim decision that found glyphosate was safe to use and did not cause cancer.

Critics said the decade-long incomplete review relied almost entirely on studies provided by the former Monsanto Co. to “cherry-pick” data.

The payment also settles multiple claims of dicamba drift and PCB water lawsuits.

Bayer still faces about 30,000 lawsuits from plaintiffs who did not agree to join the settlement.

Bayer agrees to pay $10 billion to settle Roundup cancer lawsuits

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