Plaintiff Dewayne Johnson listens as attorney Brent Wisner, not shown, speaks about his condition at trial in San Francisco on July 9, 2018. (File photo: Josh Edelson/Pool via Reuters)

Glyphosate maker Monsanto ruled liable in U.S. cancer trial

Reuters — A California jury on Friday found Monsanto liable in a lawsuit filed by a man who alleged the company’s glyphosate-based herbicides, including Roundup, caused his cancer and ordered the company to pay US$289 million in damages. The case of school groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson was the first lawsuit to go to trial alleging glyphosate […] Read more

Kris McNaughton, right, is a research associate at the University of Guelph’s Ridgetown Campus.

Cover crops can be tricky to kill

Cover crops can be important tools to improve soils, but there’s no single control solution

Cover crops can do a lot for the soil, but keeping them from becoming covering weeds requires the right herbicides applied at the right rate — to kill them at the right time. What cover crop is used, too, should be appropriate for the job the farmer wants to accomplish. Why it matters: Cover crops […] Read more

A soybean plantation in Brazil. Genetically modified soybeans that rely on glyphosate for weed control are planted across the country.  Photo: MailsonPignata/iStock/Getty Images

Brazil judge suspends use of glyphosate herbicide

Sao Paulo | Reuters – A Brazilian judge has suspended the use of products containing the agrochemical glyphosate, a herbicide widely employed for soybeans and other crops in the country. A federal judge in Brasilia ruled on Friday that new products containing the chemical could not be registered in the country and existing registrations would […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

U.S. judge allows Roundup-related suits to go to trial

Reuters — Hundreds of lawsuits against Monsanto Co. by cancer survivors or families of those who died can proceed to trial, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday, finding there was sufficient evidence for a jury to hear the cases that blame the company’s glyphosate herbicide for the disease. The decision by U.S. District Judge Vince […] Read more

Dicamba-tolerant soybeans will now be available through Brevant Seeds in Canada.

Brevant to market dicamba-tolerant soys

Monsanto and Corteva Agriscience has signed a deal that brings Monsanto’s dicamba-tolerant soybeans to the new Brevant seed brand in Canada. The two companies announced the deal June 27. Monsanto will licence for Roundup Ready 2 Xtend technology for soybeans to Corteva Agriscience, the newly formed company that combines DuPont Pioneer, DuPont Crop Protection and […] Read more


Wheat being loaded onto a cargo ship in Vancouver in 2011. Shipments of wheat to Japan and South Korea are both expected to resume soon. (File photo: Reuters/Ben Nelms)

Wheat shipment halt seen as temporary

Wheat sales are expected to soon resume to Japan and South Korea. Both nations suspended Canadian wheat imports following the June 15 announcement that Canada had discovered several genetically modified (GM) wheat plants in southern Alberta. But both are expected to come back to the market shortly, while exports to others won’t be affected, according […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

Extended-tolerance canola now on deck for 2019

Giving growers a wider window to spray in-crop weeds with glyphosate, the new platform for Monsanto’s future canola trait stacks is now booked to make its way into the Canadian market next year. The U.S. seed and chemical company’s Canadian arm announced last week it plans to commercialize TruFlex canola in 2019, following plot trials […] Read more

The Elbe River at Oberrathen, southeast of Dresden. (CIA.gov)

Germany moving ahead with plans to restrict glyphosate

Berlin | Reuters — German Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner on Tuesday said she was finalizing a draft regulation to end use of glyphosate herbicide in household gardens, parks and sports facilities, and to set “massive” limits for its use in agriculture. The chemical, made by Monsanto, is at the centre of a heated debate in […] Read more


(Dave Bedard photo)

U.S. judge halts California plan for warnings on glyphosate

Chicago | Reuters — A federal judge has temporarily blocked California’s plans to require cancer warnings on products containing glyphosate, in a win for manufacturer Monsanto. U.S. District Judge William Shubb said the warnings would be misleading because glyphosate is not known to cause cancer, according to court documents filed on Monday in California. He […] Read more

(Dave Bedard photo)

German coalition deal sets no timetable to end glyphosate use

Hamburg | Reuters –– Germany’s draft coalition government deal includes a goal of ending use of glyphosate herbicide within the country, but gives no time frame, after Berlin swung a vote in November extending its use across the European Union. The timing of an end to glyphosate use has been highly controversial in Europe amid […] Read more