US workers sue Monsanto, claim herbicide caused cancer

A Los Angeles farm worker and a New York horticultural assistant filed separate lawsuits last week claiming Monsanto Co.’s herbicide Roundup caused their cancer diagnoses.

The lawsuits come six months after the cancer research unit of the World Health Organization determined Roundup’s active ingredient glyphosate to be “probably carcinogenic to humans,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

The lawsuits claim the Environmental Protection Agency changed the WHO’S classification under pressure from the Creve Coeur-based agrochemical company. A spokeswoman for Monsanto said the claims lack merit and the chemical is safe when used as directed.

Read more from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.