(Beyond Pesticides, May 19, 2025) The Trump administration has removed crucial protections established under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), including those that protect birds from pesticide poisoning. The Migratory Bird Protection Act (MBPA), introduced in May by Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), will restore protections against an “incidental take.” Beyond Pesticides is calling for the protection of migratory birds and the restitution of funds to implement the law. This is not the first time that President Trump has reduced protection for migratory birds. In his first term (2017), the Department of the Interior issued a policy that relieved industries of the requirement to protect birds, and they will no longer be held accountable for bird deaths. In addition, the agency is expected to propose rules to make this policy change permanent. >> Tell your U.S. Representative to cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act (H.R. 3188).  MBTA was passed in 1918 to protect migratory birds soon after the last Passenger Pigeon died in captivity, followed by the last Carolina Parakeet. MBTA originally resulted from the loss of birds due to a number of threats—notably at the time, the collection of bird feathers. It prohibits the take (including killing, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 15, 2025) The United Nations’ Conference of Parties (COP) for the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), originally adopted by 128 countries in 2001, voted to move the highly neurotoxic organophosphate insecticide chlorpyrifos, linked to brain damage in children, to Annex A (Elimination) with exemptions on a range of crops, control for ticks for cattle, and wood preservation, according to the POPs Review Committee. The exemptions drew criticism from groups seeking to eliminate chlorpyrifos without exemptions, as had been originally proposed. In the world of pesticide restrictions, this POPs classification marks a step forward in the international regulation of chlorpyrifos, as the U.S. sits on the sidelines. The long effort to ban this one hazardous pesticide, as important as the action is, serves as a reminder of the limitations of a whack-a-mole approach to chemical regulation of the thousands of toxic products poisoning people and the planet, filled with compromises to public health and the environment—while alternative practices and materials are available to meet productivity, profitability, and quality of life goals. According to Down to Earth, the 18 specific crop and use exemptions include the following: Barley (termites), Cabbage (diamondback moth), Cacao (cacao-mosquitoes and cacao pod […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 8, 2025) A study, published in Environmental Pollutants and Bioavailability, assesses the impacts on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) with subacute and chronic exposure to thiamethoxam, a neonicotinoid insecticide, and finds genotoxicity, oxidative stress, and changes in tissue structure, among other threats to organ function and overall fish health. “The study focused on biochemical markers, genetic damage, pesticide residue levels in fish flesh, and histopathological changes in fish exposed to different concentrations of thiamethoxam,” the authors state. The threats do not end there; human health is also at risk from the consumption of these contaminated fish. “Unfortunately, neonicotinoids, rapidly washed into surface water from agricultural areas, pose a significant threat to environmental water quality and can harm non-target species, particularly aquatic organisms,” the researchers state. The accumulation of these chemicals leads to “ultimately harming both aquatic ecosystems and human health,” they say. In particular, the study highlights that prolonged exposure to high doses of thiamethoxam can cause “significant negative effects on fish health,” the authors note. They continue: “This exposure led to increased levels of urea and ALT [alanine aminotransferase] in the blood, indicating potential damage to the kidneys and liver. Additionally, thiamethoxam caused oxidative stress, as evidenced […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 5, 2025) With North Dakota on April 24 being the first state to enact chemical industry legislation that blocks poisoning victims from suing manufacturers for their failure to warn about their products’ hazards, a national fight over accountability and compensation has escalated. Legislation to quash lawsuits against chemical manufacturers because of their “failure to warn” about the hazards of their pesticide products is being pushed through state legislatures. Failure-to-warn claims serve as the basis for the overwhelming majority of pesticide injury litigation of the past decade, according to legal professionals, including Brigit Rollins, JD, staff attorney at the National Agriculture Law Center. The litigation is also an important check on the chemical industry in a national climate of deregulation and the Trump Administration’s dismantling of environmental and public health programs. “Failure-to-warn” is a legal argument grounded in the common law of state court systems across the nation. “Almost every pesticide injury lawsuit filed in the past ten years has included a claim that the pesticide manufacturer failed to warn the plaintiff of the health risks associated with using their product and that such failure caused the plaintiff’s injury,” says Ms. Rollins.  [See below for action steps advocated by Beyond Pesticides and local […]

* This article was cross-posted with permission from the Ecological Landscape Alliance, which was originally published on April 30, 2025. A link will be shared once it is made available. (Beyond Pesticides, May 2, 2025) With the current existential health, biodiversity, and climate threats, organic land management is a bright spot for the sustainable future envisioned by Beyond Pesticides. Founded in 1981, Beyond Pesticides began tracking the science of pesticide hazards and questioning dependency on toxic, fossil fuel-based pesticides as unnecessary to achieving effective land management, both in agricultural and nonagricultural contexts. The organization, which grew out of a series of site visits and field hearings to document the limitations of labor standards necessary to protect farmworkers, was created to bring together environmentalists, public health practitioners, farmers, land managers, farmworkers, and consumers.  Nearly a decade before its founding and less than 20 years after the publication of Silent Spring, many important laws governing clean air, water, food safety, and pesticides had been adopted. However, these statutes’ focus on mitigating risks of harm to health and the environment has fallen short, according to Beyond Pesticides. Instead, the organization pursues a precautionary approach that is codified in organic standards that grow out of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 30, 2025) A literature review published in Ecosystem Services by researchers at Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies and Rodale Institute European Regenerative Organic Center identifies the ecological and soil health benefits of regenerative organic agriculture (ROAg). In comparison to chemical-intensive farming, ROAg increases soil organic content by 22 percent, soil total nitrogen by 28 percent, and soil microbial biomass carbon by 133 percent, according to the research. While further long-term comparative research is needed to compare regenerative organic with conventional, chemical-intensive systems, as well as more precisely quantifiable benefits of regenerative organic farming on soil health, researchers were able to determine that regenerative organic agriculture “has significant positive impacts on soil health and ecosystem service delivery.”  As U.S. farmers contend with the future of unpredictable supply chains, there is an increasing interest in the organic agricultural sector to minimize superficial costs while maximizing the utility of existing resources. The density and diversity of microbial life in the soil is one such resource that requires regenerative organic principles, including the commonly held belief that soil microbial life must be fed to break down organic matter for plant nutrition, rather than bypassing the soil with synthetic petrochemical nutrients.   […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 25, 2025) A novel study in Chemosphere finds impacts on male fertility in a bee species (Osmia bicornis) with exposure to sulfoxaflor, a systemic sulfoximine insecticide with similar mechanisms to neonicotinoids. “For the first time, we demonstrate that short-term chronic, field-realistic exposure to a common pesticide reduced pre-copulatory display (36%) and sounds (27%) [courtship behaviors], increased the number of copulations (+110%) and the mating duration (+166%), while finally reducing sperm quantity (25%) and mating success (43%),” the researchers report. They continue, “Our research raises considerable concern on the impact of field-realistic, low sublethal pesticide levels on the fertility and reproductive success of pollinators.” Mating behaviors and the ability to successfully reproduce determines the survival of species. As the authors state: “Mating disorders may therefore contribute to the recent decline in insect and pollinators’ health worldwide. While the impact of pesticides on pollinators is widely considered as a driving factor for reducing pollinators’ health, their effect on mating behaviour and male fertility remains widely overlooked.” The red mason bee (O. bicornis) can “provide essential pollination service for both crops and wild plants sustaining food production and biodiversity while serving as a bioindicator of environmental health.” The abundance and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 24, 2025) As the congressionally created National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) of organic stakeholders meets this week to receive comments from the public on the semi-annual review of standards and allowed and prohibited substances in production and processing, multiple members of Congress are moving to shore up the organic sector for farmers and consumers. (See testimony here.) The current 119th Congress has brought a wave of bipartisan legislation aimed at improving the U.S. food system, including organic standards and programs. Organic advocates are pleased to see the introduction of a series of bills supporting organic, including the reintroduction of the Organic Science and Research Investment (OSRI) Act, S.1385, the New Producer Economic Security Act, S.1237, (previously Increasing Land, Security, and Opportunities (LASO) Act, H.R.3955, in 2023-24), and the newly-introduced Organic Imports Verification Act (OIVA), S.1398, among others. OIVA, introduced by Senators Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Tina Smith (D-MN), and Tim Scott (R-SC), is intended to improve consumer confidence in imported organic goods with support for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Strengthening Organic Enforcement Rule. (See a joint press release by Senators Ricketts and Smith here.) Amid federal funding freezes and cuts that business leaders say undermine small […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 23, 2025) Recent reviews of scientific literature, in both Chemosphere and Reports in Public Health, associate Parkinson’s disease (PD), the second most prevalent neurodegenerative disease globally, with pesticide exposure. “Given the pervasive nature of pesticide residues in everyday food consumption and inadequate monitoring of their long-term toxicological impacts, the role of pesticide exposure as a modifiable risk factor for neurological disorders, including PD, warrants urgent attention,” the researchers state in the article in Chemosphere. In describing the history of Parkinson’s and previous research, the authors in Reports in Public Health note that while PD etiology is not fully understood, it is a multifactorial disease. “Hereditary factors are present in approximately 10% of diagnosed cases of Parkinson’s disease, presenting early onset; while the other 90% of cases are categorized as idiopathic or sporadic Parkinson’s disease, occurring in older individuals and may be associated with exposure to environmental agents,” the researchers say. This disease, first described by English physician James Parkinson, M.D. in 1817, involves neurochemical changes that present as “the appearance of cardinal motor symptoms, such as bradykinesia, rigidity, postural instability, and rest tremor, which are essential for the clinical diagnosis of the disease,” the researchers note. The […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 22, 2025) While it has been widely found that farmworkers bear the brunt of agricultural pesticide exposures in fields and outbuildings, the outdoor use of chemicals contaminating living spaces is documented in an increasing number of studies. Two recent studies add to earlier findings that raise exposure and health concerns. A large European study of house dust contaminants, published in Science of the Total Environment, finds more than 1,200 anthropogenic compounds, including numerous organophosphates, the phthalate DEHP, PCBs, pharmaceuticals, and personal care products. And, a recent Argentine study, “Pesticide contamination in indoor home dust: A pilot study of non-occupational exposure in Argentina,” examines contaminant levels in household dust in villages and towns distributed throughout the Pampas region, where soybeans, corn, sunflowers, and livestock, especially cattle, are raised. The study participants were not agricultural workers, but teachers, government workers, librarians, retirees, college students, doctors, lawyers, artists, and business people. The Argentine study reinforces what has been previously reported, which emphasizes findings that there is no doubt that pesticide residues accumulate in homes adjacent to agricultural fields and pastures. For example, in 2023, Beyond Pesticides reported on a study of 598 California homes near agricultural areas sampled for carpet […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 17, 2025) A literature review in Reproductive Sciences finds glyphosate (GLY) and glyphosate-based herbicides (GBH) impact women’s reproductive health, adding to the long list of documented harm from this widely used weed killer. The authors note, “Considering the widespread use of GLY, the controversy regarding its endocrine-disrupting potential and reproductive toxicity, and the innumerable lawsuits filed against Bayer and Monsanto by consumers for morbidities related to Roundup™ exposure, the purpose of this review is to summarize the current literature on the potential adverse effects of GLY and GBHs on the female reproductive tract and discuss possible clinical implications on reproductive health outcomes, including polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and female fertility.”  Glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), the primary metabolite (breakdown product) of GLY, are found throughout the environment in soil and water, as well as in samples of blood, urine, seminal plasma, and breast milk. Studies have detected residues in farmworkers, as well as “in the urine of 60–80% of the general public in the USA, including pregnant women and children.” (See studies here, here, and here.) The ubiquitous use of GLY and GBH, and subsequent persistence, threatens the health and well-being of all.  Previous studies have […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 16, 2025) Documented for the first time, 15 currently used pesticides (CUPs) and four metabolites (breakdown or transformation products—TP) were found in the marine atmosphere over the Atlantic Ocean. Three legacy (banned) pesticides were also discovered. According to a recent study published in Environmental Pollution, researchers found empirical evidence for pesticide drift over remarkably long distances to remote environments. The findings of this study build on existing research that pollution knows no borders or boundaries, emphasizing Beyond Pesticides’ mission to advocate for the value of the precautionary principle through the elimination of synthetic chemicals and replacement with organic systems that address the root causes of pest pressures–including systemic failure to feed soil microbial life.   Background and Methodology “In this study, 329 pesticides, including 282 CUPs and 36 transformation products, were [sampled for] in the atmosphere across a south-north transect on the Atlantic Ocean,” said the authors. They unpack the three main objectives to address the focus and major objectives of their research: “[T]he determination of pesticide concentrations in the atmosphere of the Atlantic Ocean, The investigation of the spatial distribution of pesticides across the Atlantic Ocean, and The elucidation of potential sources and factors influencing pesticide transport […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 10, 2025) The Los Angeles Board of Supervisors has voted to declare today, April 10, Dolores Huerta Day, honoring the lifelong efforts of social justice activist Dolores Clara Fernández Huerta on the celebration of her 95th birthday. In the words of Chair Pro Tem Hilda L. Solis, according to Colorado Boulevard, “Dolores Huerta’s contributions to Los Angeles County and to Latinos across the country have inspired generations of leaders fighting for justice for all. Now more than ever, we honor Dolores Huerta for her work as one of the most influential labor activists of our time… may her legacy continue to light a fire in us all.”  Ms. Huerta, in accepting the recognition, noted, “I accept this on behalf of Los Angeles’ working people, especially our immigrant community, whose labor supports families and children. The Supervisors have gone above and beyond to assist immigrants, and as we face challenges ahead, it’s vital to continue supporting their bold, compassionate leadership for our most underserved communities.”  This action follows prior recognition from then Acting Governor of California Eleni Kounalakis in 2024 and the state of Washington in recognizing Ms. Huerta’s decades of leadership. It comes in the wake of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 9, 2025) On March 12, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the agency would be shutting down the Environmental Justice and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices and staff at ten of the regional offices and the headquarters in Washington, D.C. Administrator Zeldin declared that this move implemented President Donald Trump’s Executive Order, “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing.” In response to this decision, ten Democratic U.S. Senators—led by Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) and including Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR)—co-sponsored the Empowering and Enforcing Environmental Justice Act of 2025 to Congress that would codify funding for environmental justice offices in the Department of Justice. (See Sen. Padilla’s press release here.) Senators Duckworth and Booker—founding co-chairs of the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus—also issued the following statement: “Underserved communities in rural, urban and tribal areas already shoulder the brunt of the climate crisis and environmental injustice. These cuts and reversals will make it even harder for these communities to address some of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 8, 2025) A comprehensive literature review in Environment & Health analyzes evidence from human biomonitoring, epidemiological studies, and toxicological studies that link adverse effects on women’s reproductive health, specifically impacting the ovary, to pesticide exposure. In examining the scientific literature, consisting of over 200 studies performed in the last 25 years, the authors find pesticide exposure threatens women’s health through ovarian dysfunction. “Epidemiological studies have shown that pesticide exposures are associated with early/delayed menarche [first occurrence of menstruation], menstrual cycle disorders, early menopause, long time to pregnancy, polycystic ovary syndrome, primary ovarian insufficiency, infertility, and implantation failure in women,” the researchers state. They continue, “Both in vivo [in animals] and in vitro [in cells] studies have shown that exposure to pesticides disrupts the estrous cycle, reduces the follicle pool, alters hormone levels, and impairs oocyte [egg] maturation.” These reproductive implications are noted with many different classes of pesticides, such as insecticides, including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), organophosphates (OPs), pyrethroids, and neonicotinoids, as well as herbicides and fungicides. The authors, however, comment on present research gaps: “Much of the available epidemiological evidence focuses on legacy insecticides, such as OCPs, and a subset of insecticides that are still in use […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 7, 2025) Throughout the year and historically, the science and policy deficiencies captured by the Daily News paint a dramatic picture of the issues that support the need for strong organic standards on a range of issues, some of which will be under consideration by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) when it receives public comments through Monday, April 28. Organic advocates are gearing up to participate in the hearing process and the semi-annual meeting of the NOSB to protect and enhance the integrity of defined, certified, and enforceable organic standards as an alternative to harmful chemical-intensive practices. Because of USDA’s delay in scheduling the NOSB meeting, board members will not have time to review public comments unless they are submitted as soon as possible before the start of the board meeting on April 29. So, Beyond Pesticides is encouraging members of the public to comment early. There are public comment webinars on April 22 and 24 and a deliberative hearing from April 29 through May 1, that concern how organic food is produced. A draft meeting agenda is available here; a more detailed agenda with proposals is available here. Sign up for a 3-minute oral public comment timeslot to let the U.S. Department of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 4, 2025) In March, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) announced the launch of SprayDays California, “a first-of-its-kind statewide system designed to provide transparent, accessible and timely notifications and information about the use of specific pesticides[,]“ according to the agency’s press release. The state says that notification will occur in “advance of the scheduled use of California restricted material pesticides in production agriculture.” Growing out of the passage of AB 617 Community Emissions Reduction Act in California, passed in 2017, farmworker safety advocates have long been urging an implementation strategy that provides notification of pesticide spraying. In late 2017, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) began implementation of AB 617, a bill enacted with the stated intent of addressing the air quality crisis in many communities of predominantly people of color who are disproportionately harmed by toxic chemicals. While the overall goal of the law is to reduce air pollution in these communities, farmworker advocates have sought to operationalize a pesticide spraying notification system to warn communities when nearby spraying is scheduled to take place. The idea behind notification programs and transparency in government is that it enables those potentially exposed to take precautionary measures to […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 3, 2025) As highlighted by Beyond Pesticides in recent comments to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), chlorpyrifos (CPF) has been under scrutiny for decades due to associated adverse health effects, noted particularly in the extensive and consistent scientific evidence of neurotoxic dangers to children’s health. The latest research on CPF, published in Environmental Toxicology and Genes & Diseases, reveals additional threats to the immune system and male reproduction that are not captured in current EPA risk assessments of chlorpyrifos and raises serious health questions, given that residues are found throughout the food supply. CPF, a widely used organophosphate insecticide in agriculture, is a cholinesterase inhibitor that binds irreversibly to the active site of an essential enzyme for normal nerve impulse transmission, acetylcholine esterase (AChE), inactivating the enzyme. Many insecticides, including organophosphates and carbamates, target AChE, causing them to be highly toxic to both insects and mammals that have this enzyme as a crucial part of their nervous systems. The history of chlorpyrifos exemplifies the failure of pesticide law and policy, as this chemical, among many others, not only has direct adverse health effects but is contributing to the climate crisis, biodiversity collapse, and disproportionate levels of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 2, 2025) In examining prenatal residential proximity of documented pesticide spraying in California to the menstrual cycle characteristics of 273 Latina adolescents, researchers report in the American Journal of Epidemiology a positive association between exposure to the insecticide methomyl and heavy bleeding. Other pesticides appear to influence menstrual symptoms as well. “Adolescents’ menstrual cycle characteristics can be ‘vital signs’ of health and impact quality of life,” the authors share. They continue, “To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the association between prenatal pesticide exposure and menstrual outcomes in adolescents of any demographic group.” Menstrual cycle characteristics, such as dysmenorrhea (painful or uncomfortable menstrual cramps), irregularity, and heavy menstrual bleeding, can also be indicators of underlying health conditions, including endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), thyroid dysfunction, and bleeding disorders. By associating the pesticide exposure of mothers during pregnancy to impacts on their children, the researchers highlight important health risks for women and young girls that are often disregarded. “The prenatal period is a critical period of reproductive development that may be particularly sensitive to endocrine disruption,” the researchers share. As previously reported by Beyond Pesticides, endocrine-disrupting chemicals are any synthetic or natural compounds that hinder […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 1, 2025) With the second largest award of nearly $2.1 billion (see reporting on largest), a jury in Georgia state court on March 21 found the pesticide manufacturer Bayer/Monsanto guilty of causing a man’s non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma after use of the company’s glyphosate-based weedkiller RoundupTM product. The jury’s award includes $65 million in compensatory and $2 billion in punitive damages, as reported by the Associated Press and Courtroom View Network. This verdict in Barnes v. Monsanto (2025) comes amid a concerted effort by Bayer and other chemical and agribusiness groups to take away the main legal argument, “failure-to-warn,” for the type of litigation that pesticide exposure victims have commonly used to hold companies accountable. This is happening as Governor Brian Kemp of Georgia considers signing into state law a pesticide immunity bill that will prevent future litigation like this in the state. In a deregulatory environment, the courts and state governments are viewed as critical backstops, given the dismantling of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) regulatory apparatus and extremely limited Congressional oversight. History of Litigation Bayer has lost almost all of the cases filed against it for compensation and punitive damages associated with the plaintiffs’ charge that […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 28, 2025) The Rhine Valley in southwestern Germany is renowned for the agricultural bounty it has provided for centuries. Today, the area is home to dense wine, vegetable, fruit, and cereal cultivation. However, a study shows that current regulation of pesticides, even in the relatively progressive European Union, is inadequate to protect humans and all the other organisms that produce the environment necessary for human life and civilization.  The study goal was to determine how far—and which—pesticides traveled beyond the croplands of vegetables, fruit orchards, and cereals, as well forested lands, into nontarget areas that should serve as refugia for plants, animals, and invertebrates not considered pests. Based at the Landau Institute for Environmental Sciences at the University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, the researchers used innovative methods to measure the types, concentrations, and distribution of pesticides. They took samples from three landscape categories—vegetation, topsoil, and surface water—at 78 sites distributed along six transects, each reaching from the valley floor to the tops of the mountains on either side. Samples were taken from grasses, shrub leaves, and topsoils along each transect, together with water samples from rivers, small streams, ponds, and puddles. They tested for 93 current-use pesticides (CUPs). There […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 27, 2025) In Ecotoxicology, results of a study on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) exposed to florpyrauxifen-benzyl (FPX) suggest the new herbicide causes oxidative stress (imbalances affecting the body’s detoxification abilities that lead to cell and tissue damage), with specific genotoxic (damage to genetic material) and hepatotoxic (damage to the liver) effects on nontarget species. The authors state: “According to the available literature, no data exist on the toxicity of FPX in fish. Therefore, this study aims to investigate, for the first time, the potential toxicity and associated mechanistic effects of the pyridine-carboxylic acid herbicide (FPX) on the non-target species, Nile tilapia.” According to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, “Florpyrauxifen-benzyl is a systemic herbicide (i.e., it moves throughout the plant tissue). It is a WSSA Group 4 herbicide, meaning that the mechanism of action is by mimicking the plant growth hormone auxin and causing excessive elongation of plant cells, ultimately killing the plant.” The researchers, from Menoufia University, the Agricultural Research Center, and Cairo University in Egypt, focus on FPX as it is the active ingredient in Divixton 2.5% EC, a newly released herbicide used in rice fields and applied directly to freshwater aquatic bodies for emergent […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 26, 2025) State legislation to quash lawsuits against chemical manufacturers because of their “failure to warn” about the hazards of their pesticide products is moving forward in seven state legislatures (Iowa, Missouri, Idaho, Florida, North Dakota, Tennessee, and Oklahoma) across the United States. After three bills failed to pass (Mississippi, Wyoming, and Montana) and one bill is awaiting signature into law by the Governor’s Office (Georgia), Beyond Pesticides, working with a broad coalition, is pushing back. (See Beyond Pesticides’ Failure to Warn resource hub, background materials, and opportunities for action.) If adopted, the “immunity from litigation” legislation would set a dangerous precedent for state common law claims against any manufacturers of products with toxic ingredients. Currently, pesticide labels under federal and state law generally do not warn of potential chronic effects, such as cancer, reproductive effects, infertility, birth defects, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, cardiovascular damage, and more (see Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database), but warn of acute effects, such as rashes, headaches, stinging eyes, and more. After years of large jury awards, preemptive settlements, and lost appeals in cases involving exposure to the weedkiller glyphosate, Bayer/Monsanto is trying to stop the company’s financial hemorrhaging with a state-by-state strategy […]