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San Francisco (AFP) – A California dying cancer gardener is ready to testify on Monday in front of jurors who hear evidence in his trial for blaming Monsanto Roundup herbal killer for his terminal illness
. The agrochemical colossus is expected to last until August, with major potential impact on the company recently acquired by the German company Bayer.
The case is the first to be judged due to a link between Roundup cancer, one of the world's largest.
Johnson arrived at court on Monday with his lawyer and his wife, and watched as his dermatologist Ope Ofodile testified in the California Superior Court trial.
The legal clash involves duel studies, as well as allegations
Diagnosed in 2014 with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer that affects white blood cells, Johnson used a version of Roundup. called "Ranger Pro" several times in his job at a school in Benicia, California, after being promoted to the gardener in 2012.
Ofodile testified that Johnson consulted him when he noticed a rash on her body from 2014.
After seeing the rash, Odofile said that she sent a letter to the district school board saying "that it does not should not be exposed to airborne chemicals that "
When asked if she was talking about Ranger Pro, she answered" Yes. "
But the doctor said that she did not Had not investigated the causes of the rash and that she was focusing on treating the patient. "Instead of establishing a connection with Roundup, Johnson had few warnings about Roundup's risks, said his lawyer in opening statements earlier this month.
"He was told that you could drink it, it was completely non-toxic, "said lawyer Brent Wisner in his opening remarks. 659014] The lawyer said Johnson, who is between chemotherapy rounds, "is actually borrowed time – he's not supposed to be alive today."
A key to the Johnson case will convince jurors that the Monsanto pesticide – whose main ingredient is glyphosate – is responsible for the disease. Wisner argued that glyphosate combined with an ingredient meant to help it spread on the leaves in a "synergy" carcinogen.
– Potential impact of the case –
If glyphosate causes cancer has been the source of long debates among government regulators "
If Monsanto loses, the case could open the door to hundreds of Additional lawsuits against the company
Monsanto has denied any link to the disease and claims that studies have concluded that the product is safe. 19659020] "Mr. Johnson's cancer is a terrible disease, we all do it and we should all have great sympathy for what it's going through," said Monsanto's defense attorney, George Lombardi, during his opening speech. Scientific evidence is overwhelming that glyphosate-based products do not cause cancer and have not caused Mr. Johnson's cancer. "
The flagship herbicide of Monsanto Roundup was launched in 1976.
Roundup was According to Lombardi, the International Agency for Research on Cancer – a body of the World Health Organization – has classified glyphosate as "probably carcinogenic" and, therefore, the state of California has classified it as a carcinogen.
Founded in 1901 in St. Louis, Missouri, Monsanto began producing agrochemicals in the 1940s. It was acquired by Bayer for more than $ 62 billion in June.
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