A class-action lawsuit filed in U.S. district court in St. Louis says Monsanto and BASF genetically engineered dicamba-resistant crops knowing the weedkiller was likely to harm neighboring crops, and that “everything they did and failed to do increased the risk,” reports Harvest Public Media.
The suit consolidates 11 lawsuits from Arkansas to South Dakota. A survey by a University of Missouri weed scientist says dicamba damaged was reported on 1.1 million acres of soybeans as of mid-July. Last year, complaints blamed dicamba for damage to 3.6 million acres of soybeans.
Growers have embraced the new varieties of cotton and soybeans because they want a new tool against weeds that are developing resistance to other herbicides. Some analysts say dicamba is too fickle to be used, even with new low-volatility formulations. Monsanto says damage usually is due to applicator error. The EPA imposed additional restrictions this year on the time of day and weather conditions for use of the weedkiller.
A lead attorney in the class-action case, Don Downing, said the companies commercialized a product “that literally destroys its competition. We believe that’s a violation of federal antitrust laws.”