A Washington man is suing the maker of the popular weed killer Roundup over the Monsanto Roundup controversy. He claims that Monsanto knew their weed killer contained cancer-causing chemicals.

Plaintiff William R. says he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma on Sept. 18, 2014. In the 1970s, he alleges, he began using the weed killer Roundup on his family’s farm in Seward County, Neb. This farm encompassed 160 acres. He claims that he followed all the safety and precautionary warnings when he used Roundup. However, he was diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell non-Hodgkins lymphoma in 2014.

William believes that his illness is as a direct result of the Monsanto Roundup controversy and that Monsanto is responsible for his lymphoma.

According to this Monsanto Roundup controversy lawsuit, Monsanto was aware of the carcinogenic properties of the main ingredient in Roundup, a chemical called glyphosate. Monsanto is the world’s leading producers of glyphosate. Glyphosate, Monsanto discovered in the 1970s, worked well as a broad-spectrum herbicide.

This Monsanto controversy lawsuit claims that glyphosate, when it is sprayed on crops, only kills certain plants that act as weeds, but not the crops themselves. It only kills the plants that contain a certain enzyme.

However, every year over 250 million pounds of glyphosate is sprayed on crops in the United States. Some critics at the forefront of this Monsanto Roundup controversy claims that this excessive spraying of glyphosate on crops has led to an increase in GMOs or genetically modified crops that can resist the glyphosate.

This may be detrimental to the health of those who consume those crops. By 2010, 70% of U.S. corn and cotton crops and 90% of U.S. soybean crops were modified to resist glyphosate.

Glyphosate has connections to cancer and other diseases. As in William’s case, glyphosate is linked to non-Hodgkins lymphoma. But it is also been seen in connection with leukemia, multiple myeloma, B-cell lymphoma, bone cancer, renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer), skin tumors, pancreatic islet cell tumors, chromosomal damage and DNA damage.

Many believe the real Monsanto Roundup controversy lies not with the connection of the weed killer to numerous cancers and deadly conditions, but that Monsanto allegedly hid their knowledge from the public from as far back as the 1990s.

Plaintiffs allege that instead of informing the public and their customers about the potential problems with Roundup, Monsanto has been marketing its glyphosate product as safe for animals, children and adults.

Indeed, in 1996, the New York Attorney General challenged Monsanto’s allegations that glyphosate was “safer than table salt” and “practically non-toxic” to animals. Monsanto was hit with a lawsuit that challenged these claims and other claims Monsanto made about their products not affecting soil and its biodegradable properties.

William as well as other plaintiffs in Monsanto Roundup controversy lawsuits allege that Mosanto has been negligent and that their product is defectively designed. Other counts against Monstanto made by William include failure to warn and breach of implied warranties.

This Monsanto Roundup Controversy Lawsuit is Case No. 4:17-cv-02428-HEA in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.

If you or a loved one developed cancer after using Roundup as a farm worker or home gardener, you may have a legal claim. Legal migrant farm workers may also seek help. Learn more by filling out the form on this page for a FREE case evaluation.

Learn More