Bayer (Monsanto) wins glyphosate case
Sunday, 12 July 2026 ecocide climate change permaculture structural inequality systems
Though its active compound, glyphosate, has been linked to serious health conditions, the company Bayer can not be sued for failure to warn of cancer risks.
Recently CNBC posted this article with the header reading "Supreme Court limits Roundup cancer suits against Bayer’s Monsanto".
The Supreme Court (the highest court in the USA) has ruled in a 7-2 decision that Bayer can no longer be held accountable over state-level claims that they failed to warn of cancer risks from its herbicide Roundup and its chemically active compound glyphosate.
The ruling
The article reads:
Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the majority, arguing that because the Environmental Protection Agency deems glyphosate safe when used properly and has not required a cancer warning label, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) preempts state-level failure to warn claims.
“With respect to pesticide labels, FIFRA demands ‘[u]niformity’ and expressly preempts state labeling requirements that are ‘in addition to’ or ‘different from’ federal labeling requirements. And as a matter of law, state tort law may not impose labeling requirements ‘in addition to’ or ‘different from’ federal requirements imposed under FIFRA.”
So while people sued in state courts, Bayer argued that the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had already approved the labels and deemed glyphosate safe. They claimed that state courts shouldn't be able to impose rules different from federal law.
The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) is the federal law governing pesticides. It includes a specific clause, stating that federal labeling rules are the final word.
Because of this clause, the federal law preempts the state claims. This means the state-level lawsuits are legally blocked or thrown out because they try to enforce a standard that conflicts with the federal one.
Simply put: If the federal government says a pesticide label is complete and safe, individual states cannot sue companies to force them to add extra warnings (like a cancer warning) to that label. The federal standard is the only one that applies.
Also convenient to know: In 2015, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer found that glyphosate was “probably carcinogenic to humans.”
Let's continue. A bit further in the article it reads:
Bayer celebrated the decision on Thursday, saying it is “good for science, farmers, and industries that depend on regulatory clarity for innovation.”
One could dispute whether a chemical linked to cancer is good for science (in what sense really?), farmers (whose risks for getting cancers increase) and industries (this one make sense, cause it's their money-making business model).
The company’s shares rose 15.75% following the ruling. So yes, the concern for money trumps self-evident significance of health. How convenient for Bayer.
MAHA implications
Furthermore the court’s decision will most likely have political consequences for the Trump administration.
The "Make America Healthy Again" (MAHA) political slogan and policy movement associated with the Trump administration and championed by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (Secretary of Health and Human Services), doesn't particulary resonate with this ruling, does it?
“Today’s SCOTUS ruling is historic. Never in history has an administration so blatantly and willingly sold out our fertility, vitality, and health to corporate interests,” MAHA advocate Kelly Ryerson wrote on X.
A SCOTUS ruling is a final decision issued by the Supreme Court of the United States (often abbreviated as SCOTUS). It represents the ultimate interpretation of the U.S. Constitution and federal law. There is no higher court to appeal to.
Apart from it's carcinogenic risks, here are probably some other things you need to to understand about glyphosate.
Bacteria and gut health
It doesn’t just kill undesired plants, it also kills the Bifidobacterium bacteria in your gut that improve the intake of complex nutrients, help train and regulate the immune system, reduce inflammation and function as a gut barrier to protect us against pathogens.
Research has shown that glyphosate kills beneficial bacteria like Bifidobacterium (and Lactobacillus) .
Bifidobacterium is a genus of beneficial bacteria that naturally lives in the human gut, particularly in the intestines. They are one of the first and most important types of bacteria to colonize the human digestive tract, especially in infants (historically 60 to 90%).
Recent studies indicate this number is dropping in industrialized nations and suggests that around 25% of U.S. infants now lack detectable levels of these bacteria entirely. Could a glyphosate rich diet have anything to do with it?
Bifidobacterium are probiotics, meaning live microorganisms that provide health benefits when consumed. They help break down complex carbohydrates, fiber, and proteins that the human body cannot digest on its own. This process produces short-chain fatty acids (like acetate and lactate) which nourish the cells lining the gut and maintain a healthy acidic environment that inhibits harmful bacteria.
Research also indicates that Bifidobacterium levels in vegans and vegetarians can be 2 to 3 times higher than in omnivores due to them thriving on dietary fibers (prebiotics). These fibers are found abundantly in whole foods (legumes, whole grains, fruits, vegetables).
Hungry for more? As you probably suspected, glyphosate isn't good for the planet either.
Environmental impact
Soil health
Glyphosate works by inhibiting the shikimate pathway, a metabolic process found in plants and many microorganisms (bacteria and fungi) but not in animals.
Because many beneficial soil bacteria and fungi rely on this pathway, glyphosate can alter the composition of the soil microbiome. Studies indicate it can reduce populations of beneficial microbes (like Pseudomonas and mycorrhizal fungi) that help plants absorb nutrients and fight disease, while potentially favoring pathogenic fungi like Fusarium (eventually killing the plant).
By disrupting these microbial communities, glyphosate can interfere with the natural cycling of nutrients (such as manganese, zinc, and iron), making them less available to crops and requiring additional fertilizer use. Another Monsanto business model as they conveniently sell these exact fertilizers.
One could say many things about an agricultural system built on chemical insecticides, fungicides and herbicides, demanding the use of chemical fertilizers and genetically modified (GMO) seeds. The convenience of this closed economic business model, provided by Monsanto is extractive to say the least.
Some research also suggests glyphosate can negatively affect earthworm health and reproduction, which are critical for soil aeration and structure.
Insects and pollinators
While glyphosate is a herbicide and not an insecticide (it doesn't directly kill insects on contact like nerve agents), it harms them indirectly and physiologically.
Similar to humans, bees and other pollinators rely on specific gut bacteria to digest food and fight pathogens. Glyphosate exposure disrupts these gut bacteria, making bees more susceptible to infections and reducing their survival rates.
As a broad-spectrum herbicide, glyphosate kills flowering weeds and plants that serve as food sources for bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects. The use of glyphosate on "Roundup Ready" (read: GMO) crops has led to a significant reduction in biodiversity within agricultural fields, contributing to the decline of pollinator populations.
One specific example is the elimination of milkweed (the sole food source for Monarch caterpillars). This is the primary driver of the Monarch butterfly population collapse.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The contribution of glyphosate to climate change occurs through both its manufacturing and its effect on soil carbon.
Recent estimates suggest that the manufacture, distribution, and application of glyphosate globally generate approximately 9.76 billion kg of CO2 equivalent emissions annually. This includes the fossil fuels used to create the precursor chemicals. To put this in perspective, this is roughly equal to the annual emissions of 1.2 million average gasoline-powered cars.
Moreover, healthy soil microbiomes are essential for capturing and storing carbon. By disrupting soil fungi and bacteria, glyphosate may impair the soil's ability to sequester carbon, potentially releasing stored carbon back into the atmosphere.
What can I do?
So you're probably wondering now what you can do to protect yourself and your loved ones against this disastrous model.
Here are 5 focus points
Buy as many organic (preferably permaculture) foods as possible.
I shifted parts of my (small income) budget to prioritize my food intake. Treat your body as a temple. To the contrary what many people believe, plant based diets are not more expensive when they're focused on whole foods. My food costs actually went down when I switched to organic and plant-based.
Learn how to grow crops yourself.
On my terrace in Brussels it's challenging, but possible nonetheless. I grow many plants in plant containers and 20L buckets. Some easy plants I can recommend are tomatoes, garlic, berries of all kinds, figs, cabbages, lettuce, arugula and herbs. I'll go more into detail in a future post.
Choose permaculture practices.
It's a regenerative system that focuses on naturally closed systems recycling resources and nutrients. It enhances and stimulates biodiversity of all life forms and shifts your mindset to empathy and giving back to the planet. More on this later.
Stop financing the system and don't buy these chemical products.
Undesired plants (weeds) can be suppressed by mulching and smart watering techniques. This way you can exhaust the existing seed bank in your soil and will only have to deal with the limited, seasonal seed dispersion. Also try and understand how your soil works. Learn how to read into what plants are telling you about the soil you're growing on. I'll post about this in the future as well.
Keep the community alive.
Share this information with the people around you. Take courage and inform those who claim that the modern industrial way of agriculture is the way to go. And if you see petitions against specifically harming laws or practices in the world, sign your name or mail your representatives demanding action. Collective pressure works.