The measure “would limit state and local governments from issuing their own rules about pesticide safety warnings,” Romm reported. “Instead, they would be required to follow the lead of the federal government on what to label and when. … That measure could effectively shut down some of the lawsuits against Bayer, legal experts said.”

“The legislation aims to prevent local governments and courts from being able to ‘penalize or hold liable any entity for failing to comply’ with rules for pesticide warnings that differ substantially from what the federal government already mandates,” Romm reported. “At the moment, the Environmental Protection Agency does not treat the underlying chemical in Roundup as a carcinogen.

“While the agency plans to reevaluate its stance on glyphosate in 2026, its views are at odds with some global health experts, including the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, which identified glyphosate as ‘probably carcinogenic’ in 2015. The European Union, for its part, has not found the herbicide to be carcinogenic.”

“The provision builds on an earlier proposal introduced by Reps. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) and Jim Costa (D-Calif.), two members of the House Agriculture Committee,” Romm reported. “Bayer helped craft that measure, then circulated it among lawmakers to rally support before later pushing the House to add it to the farm bill, the people familiar with the effort said. The House doesn’t yet have a vote scheduled on that package, which expires Sept. 30.”

Source:

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The move is designed to mitigate future litigation risk.

This spring, a judge rejected Bayer’s plan to limit the cost of settlements in claims that its glyphosate product causes non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

In a call with investors, Bayer officials said they will file a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court to review the lower court ruling. If the ruling is in Bayer’s favor, they said it would end Roundup litigation. But, if it is not, Bayer will set aside $4.5 billion for future lawsuits.

Bayer says its case has gotten stronger since the litigation began when the product was owned by Monsanto.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

Bayer said the decision will not impact the availability of Roundup. Bayer also said it continues to pursue options to mitigate future litigation risk.

The company stands by the safety of glyphosate and is committed to keeping it available for farmers.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

The company released its agreement with plaintiffs’ class counsel last week. It is being filed in a U.S. District Court in California that is overseeing the multi-district litigation.

As part of the plan, Bayer will establish a fund to compensate qualified claimants during a four-year program, create an advisory science panel whose findings could be used in future litigation, and a notice program.

Bayer is also requesting EPA allow a link to glyphosate research studies on labels to provide customers with greater transparency.

The company said the announcement has no impact on the availability of Roundup, an important tool for growers around the world.

Last June the company announced it would pay more than $10 billion to settle most of its court cases involving Roundup.

The agreement must be approved by the court.

Source: Brownfield Ag News

On June 3, the U.S. Ninth District Court of Appeals ruled that farmers could no longer spray dicamba. Days later, the EPA issued an order canceling the registrations of the three dicamba products (Bayer’s Xtendimax, BASF’s Engenia and Corteva’s FeXapan) but allowing growers and applicators to use existing stocks through July 31.

Opponents of dicamba filed an emergency order with the court asking it to call for an immediate end to use of the herbicide. A coalition of farmers stepped in to ask the court to allow use to continue.

The coalition argued that America’s soybean and cotton growers have spent more than $4 billion on seed and hundreds of millions on herbicides, including Xtendimax, Engenia, and FeXapan.

It went on to say an estimated 64 million acres of dicamba-tolerant seed was already planted and no viable alternative existed for weed control. Losing access to dicamba could lead to yield loss as high as 50 percent, the argument said, with respective losses estimated at as much as $10 billion for soybean growers and $800 million for sorghum growers.

In related news, after a stream of lawsuits against Bayer over its glyphosate weedkiller, and more than a year of negotiations, the company has agreed to a more than $10.5 billion settlement with thousands of plaintiffs who claimed exposure to Roundup was responsible for their non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Up to $9.5 billion will be paid to settle the majority of pending litigation, while $1.25 billion will be set aside to resolve future claims and to research whether Roundup causes cancer.

The World Health Organization concluded in 2015 that glyphosate is a probable carcinogen, while the EPA has long maintained that it’s safe. The company intends to continue selling Roundup. The settlement does not contain an admission of liability or wrongdoing.

Brett Begemann, COO for Bayer Crop Science, says the company stands behind its glyphosate and dicamba products, Roundup and XtendiMax. He said no other regulatory body agrees with the WHO’s conclusion on glyphosate as a carcinogen.

Begemann also said he is confident dicamba will get through the EPA
re-registration process for use in 2021.

Sources: Brownfield Ag News, Politico

The six big firms speak on behalf of dozens of firms that represent a large chunk of the plaintiffs suing Bayer, the people said. Bayer is striving to find a way to both keep Roundup on consumer shelves and end litigation that significantly damaged its share price following the loss of three jury trials in the U.S.

For weeks, Bayer and plaintiffs attorneys have been discussing a settlement in the $10 billion range, The Wall Street Journal has reported. One person said the deal still appears poised to end up around that number, though sources cautioned that a formal deal hasn’t been signed and could yet fall apart.

Parties on both sides are free to walk away from the agreements, and Bayer has said that protecting itself from future litigation is a condition of any settlement.

Tens of thousands of plaintiffs have sued Bayer, saying Roundup is linked to cancer. The company has defended the popular weedkiller, noting that multiple regulators, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, have said it is safe. The company lost its first three jury trials, all of which it is appealing.

Bayer may still struggle to achieve finality in the case, especially given that the product remains on store shelves. Some law firms representing thousands of plaintiffs remain unhappy with the terms offered so far, saying that it favors the leading firms over others. It is unclear if this complaint will be enough reason for them to reject the certainty offered by a settlement versus going to trial.

“Cancer victims have to be treated the same, and if they’re not, we’re ready, willing and fully motivated to go to trial,” said Majed Nachawati, a Dallas-based attorney representing more than 4,000 claimants.

Source: Wall Street Journal

The penalty was levied on top of $15 million in compensatory damages awarded the day before to peach grower Bill Bader, who farms near Campbell, Mo.

The case was the first in a wave of litigation from farmers who blame drift-prone dicamba herbicides for millions of acres of crop damage in recent years, following the release of seed varieties genetically engineered to tolerate the chemical.

The companies presented separate defenses. Each found that armillaria root rot and other diseases caused Bader’s trees to die.

“While Mr. Bader is claiming losses in his orchards, the evidence fundamentally showed nothing related to Xtend seed or herbicide,” said Chris Hohn, attorney for Monsanto. “What is happening at Bader farms is not dicamba, it’s armillaria root rot.”

 â€śWe are surprised and disappointed with the jury’s decision and plan to appeal,” BASF said in a statement to AgWeb. “Dicamba-based herbicides, like Engenia herbicide, are critically important tools for growers battling resistant weeds in their soybean and cotton fields.”

The EPA has said dicamba does not pose unreasonable risk when used according to instructions.

Sources: AgWeb, Farm Progress, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, DTN