Glyphosate: Bayer to pay $10 billion to settle 95,000 lawsuits
Rights — di Andrea Barolini
Bayer has announced a settlement aimed at closing 75 per cent of the litigation brought in the United States over glyphosate. But it admits no liability.
Glyphosate: Bayer to pay $10 billion to settle 95,000 lawsuits
Bayer has announced a settlement aimed at closing 75 per cent of the litigation brought in the United States over glyphosate. But it admits no liability.
The Bayer group will pay the enormous sum of over $10 billion to settle thousands of legal proceedings brought in the United States by people claiming serious health damage caused, in their view, by exposure to glyphosate. The latter is the active ingredient in Roundup, a herbicide produced by Monsanto, a company acquired by the German multinational in 2018 for $63 billion.
Bayer to settle tens of thousands of lawsuits over Roundup and Dicamba
According to the New York Times, the settlement covers around 95,000 of the 125,000 complaints filed with various courts in the United States. These were brought primarily by users who believe they developed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as a result of glyphosate. But the decision also concerns another pesticide, Dicamba, accused of causing water pollution.
Specifically, between $8.8 billion and $9.6 billion is expected to be distributed to claimants, while $1.25 billion will serve as a "reserve" in the event of new legal actions. However, in 30,000 cases claimants have refused to sign the agreement. Bayer has indicated that it believes it can reach a settlement to close all remaining proceedings, but for now those proceedings remain active.
But the German group does not acknowledge the dangers of glyphosate
As reported by the international press, however, the German group's decision is linked solely to the opportunity to close the disputes. Bayer has not in any way acknowledged the dangers of glyphosate. On the contrary, it has reaffirmed its conviction that it poses no health risk whatsoever.
Bayer close to glyphosate settlement worth $8-10 billion: Handelsblatt reuters.com/article/us-ger…
Yet the German group has already been convicted in three cases in the United States and ordered to pay substantial damages. The best-known case is that of gardener Dewayne Johnson, who was initially awarded $289 million, subsequently reduced to $78 million. These three proceedings, which are currently under appeal, are not part of the settlement.