Roundup Is Losing in Court But Farms Aren’t About to Give It Up
Bloomberg | Lydia Mulvany
While the world’s No. 1 weedkiller has been losing in court of late, it’s still the big winner in the agricultural world.
No matter what happens with the 11,000-plus lawsuits plaintiffs have filed alleging the chemical in Roundup caused them cancer, farmers around the world are still going to keep using it, said Christopher Perrella, an analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence.
Glyphosate, the active ingredient, was the wonder drug of agriculture when it was discovered in the 1970s. It could kill almost all weeds in farmers’ fields, something no other herbicide could do. Although Roundup is getting all the headlines for safety concerns, the chemical replaced harsher and more toxic herbicides, Perrella said. In other words, alternatives are far worse.