Austria heads towards the ban of Monsanto’s Roundup and other glyphosate weed killers, as the growing concerns that exposure to the popular herbicide might be linked to cancer.
The far-right Freedom Party (FPO) backed the center-left Social Democrats on the drive to end usage of the controversial weedkiller. FPO’s new party leader Norbert Hofer, stated that there are enough studies to adequately demonstrate the risk that glyphosate poses. The ban on glyphosate was initially supported by Austria’s center-left Social Democrat party. The rare center-left and far-right alliance virtually ensure that legislation imposing glyphosate ban will make it through Austria’s parliament. Many expect lawmakers to vote on the final measure in early July.
Bayer AG, which acquired Monsanto last year faces more than 13,000 Roundup lawsuits filed in courts throughout the United States. Mostly landscapers, ground keepers, agricultural workers, and avid home gardeners claimed glyphosate caused their cancer. Bayer AG, which acquired Monsanto last year has yet to win a single verdict.
