DThe American chemical company Monsanto, which was bought by Bayer, has once again been ordered to pay high compensation in the USA because of the weed killer Roundup, which contains glyphosate. On Friday, a jury in Philadelphia awarded a plaintiff suffering from cancer $2.25 billion (around €2.1 billion), the man's lawyer confirmed to the AFP news agency.
The plaintiff, John McKivison, blamed Roundup for his cancer, a so-called non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. The court ruled that it was the result of several years of using Roundup for gardening in his home. The verdict specifically provides for compensatory damages of $250 million and punitive damages of $2 billion.
Bayer told AFP that it would appeal the verdict. The company denies that glyphosate is carcinogenic. The question has been controversial in science for years. In November, the EU Commission extended the approval of the weed killer by ten years.
Expensive takeover in 2018
Bayer acquired Roundup manufacturer Monsanto for $63 billion in 2018 and has been mired in legal proceedings ever since. The company was sentenced to pay damages in a number of glyphosate judgments, but was acquitted in other cases. Settlements were concluded in numerous cases.
According to Bayer, around 113,000 of the 160,000 cases brought by alleged victims have been completed so far. The group has set aside provisions for this amounting to $16 billion.
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