Double Victory! Monsanto pesticide and GMOs just got whacked!
by Andrew Kimbrell, Executive Director, Center for Food Safety
We just made history! Center for Food Safety (CFS) just had one of the most important legal victories ever against pesticides and GMO crops.
After years of litigation, a Federal Court just banned Monsanto’s toxic pesticide dicamba. This also effectively halts the use of GMO crops designed to tolerate that pesticide. This massive win protects farmers, our health, and hundreds of endangered species.
The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that EPA’s approval of the pesticide be immediately revoked and its use stopped. This provides relief to thousands of farmers across the country whose crops have been decimated by the drift of this pesticide onto their fields.
In ruling the pesticide approval unlawful, the Court cited “enormous and unprecedented damage” caused by dicamba in the last few years, damage that has “torn apart the social fabric of many farming communities.”
This victory took years of effort by CFS’s legal and science teams and we could not have asked for a better result. We are so proud of them, and so incredibly grateful to our members and donors that enable these major victories to happen.
MORE INFORMATION ON THE MAJOR VICTORY:
Monsanto’s dicamba pesticide was approved to be sprayed directly on Monsanto’s GMO corn and soybeans which are genetically engineered to be resistant to it. This toxic pesticide is notorious for drifting to neighboring farms, damaging wild plants, trees, and organic fruits and vegetables that we all enjoy. Here are some more exciting facts on the impact of this victory:
1. Hundreds of endangered species — including dozens of important wild plants, birds, and insect pollinators — were at risk from this pesticide.
2. By winning this case, we have likely stopped more than 25 million pounds of dicamba being sprayed over 100 million acres!
3. By banning the use of dicamba on GMO crops, this victory has the potential to massively reduce the use of GMO soy and cotton!
The government’s approval of Monsanto’s dicamba pesticide was not just irresponsible, but unlawful. Heroic farmers and farmworkers put themselves in harm’s way every day so that we can all enjoy a safe food supply. They should be protected; not made scapegoats in order for Monsanto to fatten its bottom line at their expense. With your support, we made our case in court on behalf of farmers and the environment over many years, based on all of the evidence produced through our litigation — AND WE WON!
Not surprisingly, just days after our legal victory, EPA issued a disingenuous and illegal order stating farmers can use dicamba until July 31. This agency order flies in the face of the Court decision and CFS immediately filed a legal motion with the Court asking them to clarify their legal opinion. As always, the CFS legal team is there to hold agencies and corporations accountable.
Here at CFS, we do all of our legal work pro bono — without charge — and these years-long lawsuits are truly only possible because of our long-time supporters.
As we celebrate this important victory, know we are working hard on multiple additional lawsuits and campaigns challenging pesticides and GMOs, including our recent lawsuit challenging EPA’s re-approval of Monsanto’s notorious cancer-causing pesticide, glyphosate.
DONATE TO CFS FOR MORE VICTORIES AGAINST MONSANTO!
Onwards, together!
Originally published at https://www.centerforfoodsafety.org.