Monsanto is based in St. Louis, and their central argument is really quite a lame legal argument for such high powered lawyers from a company that had one of its corporate counsel become the US Attorney General (John Ashcroft) and presently has a former corporate counsel on the US Supreme Court (Clarence Thomas).
Their argument goes like this: California's Carcinogen Identification Committee illegally delegated authority to an unelected foreign body with no accountability to U.S. or state officials, so this is therefore in violation of the California Constitution. In fact, the testimony from the World Health Organization was only a part of the CIC's decision, which had a due process for a lengthy testimony period and oral hearings in Sacramento.
No doubt, Ajinomoto of Japan, the world's largest maker of two neurotoxic food additives, MSG and Aspartame, will likely try some argument like Monsanto's, if they hire competent lawyers to contest what has occurred thus far, and they are litigious bunch, in a very strange manner, like suing a grocery chain a few years back which described aspartame as "nasty," and therefore, they got rid of it. The case was adjudicated in a curious British manner, giving both sides some of what they wanted.
California carcinogenic labeling is a much different matter, not a mere public relations blow to Monsanto, but one which will have massive international, legal, and even judicial implications far into the dismal future of this monstrous corporate giant, so used to always getting its way.
Saiontz and Kirk, a personal injury law firm in Baltimore, Maryland, clearly identifies these cancers as actionable among their many potential clients: "As a result of Monsanto's failure to adequately warn about the potential cancer risk, financial compensation may be available through a Roundup lawsuit for individuals diagnosed with: Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Multiple Myeloma, Leukemia, and other cancers. This is what they have to say:
Studies have linked the general use of pesticides and herbicides to an increased risk of lymphatic cancer, which attacks the lymphatic system. The lymphatic system is a key part of the immune system and helps carry nutrients to cells. Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is the most common type of lymphatic cancer, or lymphoma.Symptoms of non-Hodgkins Lymphoma from Roundup exposure may include:
Swollen Lymph Notes (in Neck, Armpits or Groin)
Abdominal or Chest Pain
Trouble Breathing or Coughing
Fever and Night Sweats
Fatigue
Sudden Weight Loss
A review published by the World Health Organization's IARC in May 2015 in The Lancet Oncology looked at studies on humans and mice exposed to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup and other popular weed killers. Three human studies were included in the review, including one study in the U.S. in 2003, one in Canada in 2001, and one in Sweden in 2008. All three appear to suggest that there may be an increased risk of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma from Roundup or glyphosate exposure among humans. As a result the WHO declared in 2015 that Roundup is a probably carcinogen.
In addition, glyphosate has been detected in the blood and urine of agricultural workers and other studies IARC investigated indicated that it caused DNA and chromosomal damage in mammals, as well as in human and animal cells in the womb.
In animal tests, IARC researchers found that mice exposed to glyphosate developed skin tumors, renal tubule carcinoma, as well as pancreatic islet-cell adenoma.
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