On Tuesday, Agribusiness giant Monsanto questioned the $78 million verdicts given to a dying California man who said the company’s widely used Roundup weed killer was a major factor in his cancer.
The company filed a notice of appeal in San Francisco Superior Court challenging a jury verdict in favour of DeWayne Johnson. In August, the jury unanimously found that Roundup caused Johnson’s non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and awarded him $289 million.
Last month, Judge Suzanne Bolanos reduced that award to $78 million. Monsanto had sought a new trial or judgment in its favour.
“We continue to believe that the liability verdict and reduced damage award are not supported by the evidence at trial or the law,” Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in June, said in a statement.
he added that none of the science presented at trial supported the conclusion that Roundup was a substantial cause of Johnson’s cancer.
Monsanto facing thousands of similar lawsuits that claim glyphosate the active ingredient in Roundup causes cancer. while the company claimed that hundreds of studies have established that glyphosate is safe.
