{"id":131439,"date":"2019-04-15T12:00:22","date_gmt":"2019-04-15T11:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=131439"},"modified":"2019-04-22T10:08:38","modified_gmt":"2019-04-22T09:08:38","slug":"french-court-finds-bayers-monsanto-liable-for-farmers-sickness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2019\/04\/french-court-finds-bayers-monsanto-liable-for-farmers-sickness\/","title":{"rendered":"French Court Finds Bayer’s Monsanto Liable for Farmer’s Sickness"},"content":{"rendered":"

11 Apr 2019<\/em> – A French court has ruled that Monsanto was liable for the sickness of a farmer who inhaled one of its weedkillers, in another legal setback for the Bayer-owned business over health claims.<\/p>\n

In the latest stage of a decade-long legal tussle, the appeals court in Lyon today found in favor of farmer Paul Fran\u00e7ois\u2019 claim that Monsanto\u2019s Lasso weedkiller had made him sick and that the product\u2019s labeling had been inadequate.<\/p>\n

Fran\u00e7ois, 55, says he suffered neurological problems, including memory loss, fainting and headaches, after accidentally inhaling Lasso in 2004 while working on his farm.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr Fran\u00e7ois justifiably concludes that the product, due to its inadequate labeling that did not respect applicable regulations, did not offer the level of safety he could legitimately expect,\u201d the court said in its ruling.<\/p>\n

The latest verdict, however, did not determine compensation for the farmer, which will now be considered by another court in Lyon.<\/p>\n

Fran\u00e7ois is seeking about 1 million euros ($1.1 million) in damages.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

French cereal farmer Paul Fran\u00e7ois, head of the Phyto-Victims association, attends a news conference, after the verdict in his appeals trial against U.S. Monsanto firm, in Paris, France, April 11, 2019. REUTERS\/Charles Platiau<\/p><\/div>\n

Bayer, which acquired Monsanto in a $63 billion deal last year, said it was considering its legal options, including an appeal before France\u2019s highest court.<\/p>\n

The German chemicals group added that crop-protection products \u201cdo not pose a risk for human health if they are used according to the terms of use set out in their regulatory approval\u201d.<\/p>\n

Mr Fran\u00e7ois had won rulings against Monsanto in 2012 and 2015 before France\u2019s top court overturned the decisions and ordered the new hearing in Lyon.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are all happy to have won but it came at a heavy price,\u201d Fran\u00e7ois told reporters in Paris.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a big sigh of relief. It\u2019s been 12 years of fighting, 12 years during which I had to put my whole life on hold.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lasso was banned in France in 2007 after the product had been withdrawn in some other countries.<\/p>\n

It used a different active substance to glyphosate, the chemical contained in Monsanto\u2019s best-selling weedkiller Roundup and the target of lawsuits in the United States over alleged cancer links.<\/p>\n

The company has been found liable in two trials in California brought by cancer sufferers who have been awarded tens of millions of dollars in damages. Bayer is appealing against those rulings.<\/p>\n

The legal troubles surrounding glyphosate have contributed to Bayer losing about 30 billion euros in market value since last August. The group\u2019s chief executive on Thursday said it was \u201cmassively affected\u201d by the litigation.<\/p>\n

After the announcement of the decision, Bayer\u2019s shares extended a fall to trade about 1.5 percent down before recovering some of the losses.<\/p>\n

($1 = 0.8874 euros)<\/p>\n

________________________________________________<\/p>\n

Reporting by Catherine Lagrange in Lyon, Simon Carraud and Gus Trompiz in Paris; Additional reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Jane Merriman and David Goodman<\/em><\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 reuters.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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