by Steve Milloy, E&E Legal Senior Policy Fellow and Junkscience.com Founder
As Appearing on The Daily Caller
The weed killer Roundup was recently at the Supreme Court, pitting trial lawyers against Bayer, the manufacturer of the widely used herbicide. The issue was whether congressionally mandated federal regulation of a pesticide pre-empts holding a company liable under state law for failure to warn about cancer risk.
The case puts the cart before the horse. What exactly is the cancer risk?
Used since the mid-1970s, Roundup, and its active ingredient glyphosate, has become the most widely used herbicide globally and domestically. While it is commonly used in residential and commercial settings to control weeds, the vast majority of Roundup is used to grow row crops like corn, soybeans and cotton.
Radical green groups began opposing Roundup in the 1990s as part of their campaign against genetical engineered (GMO) crops. So-called “Roundup Ready” crops were engineered to withstand the application of Roundup to crops, thereby increasing crop yields.
