Unsealed Documents Raise New Safety Doubts on Monsanto Weedkiller Roundup

"The reputation of Roundup, whose active ingredient is the world’s most widely used weed killer, took a hit on Tuesday when a federal court unsealed documents raising questions about its safety and the research practices of its manufacturer, the chemical giant Monsanto.

Roundup and similar products are used around the world on everything from row crops to home gardens. It is Monsanto’s flagship product, and industry-funded research has long found it to be relatively safe. A case in federal court in San Francisco has challenged that conclusion, building on the findings of an international panel that claimed Roundup’s main ingredient might cause cancer.

The court documents included Monsanto’s internal emails and email traffic between the company and federal regulators. The records suggested that Monsanto had ghostwritten research that was later attributed to academics and indicated that a senior official at the Environmental Protection Agency had worked to quash a review of Roundup’s main ingredient, glyphosate, that was to have been conducted by the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

The documents also revealed that there was some disagreement within the E.P.A. over its own safety assessment."

Danny Hakim reports for the New York Times March 14, 2017.

SEE ALSO:

"California Can Require A Cancer Warning Label On Roundup Weed Killer, Judge Rules" (AP)

"Emails Reveal Monsanto's Tactics To Defend Glyphosate Against Cancer Fears" (NPR)

"MDL Monsanto Glyphosate Cancer Case Key Documents & Analysis" (U.S. Right To Know)

"Lawsuit Accuses Monsanto Of Manipulating Research To Hide Roundup Dangers" (CBS News)

"EPA Official Accused of Helping Monsanto ‘Kill’ Cancer Study" (Bloomberg)

"Monsanto Colluded to "Ghost-Write" Studies on the Pesticide Roundup" (U.S. PIRG Release)

"Monsanto Accused of Ghostwriting Papers on Roundup Cancer Risk" (Bloomberg)

"Lawsuit: Monsanto Ghostwrote Papers On Roundup Cancer Risk, EPA Used Them, … & EPA Official In Charge Of Cancer Risk Evaluation Tried To “Kill” ATSDR Investigation" (Clean Technica)

Pretrial Order on Motions to Seal (U.S. District Court)

"Judge Threatens to Sanction Monsanto for Secrecy in Roundup Cancer Litigation" (U.S. Right to Know)

"Monsanto Cancer Suits Turn to EPA Deputy's 'Suspicious' Role" (Bloomberg)

"Monsanto-Gate: Leaked Roundup Cancer Report" (Lawyers and Settlements)

Source: NY Times, 03/16/2017