Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by zztop44 on Saturday November 04, 2023 @11:34AM
(#38141992)
I agree, for what it’s worth. It’s hard. Roundup kills weeds and it seems miles better than other things that also kill weeds. But yeah it’s bad so don’t use it, but that doesn’t solve the question of what should we use instead. It’s genuinely hard, many people who start off organic farming and hating Monsanto end up using Roundup because it’s the best out of a series of bad choices.
That said, if they lied about known risks and lied in their marketing then by all means throw the book at them. And if people are sick as a result of their greed then throw the book twice. But still, I wouldn’t blame any farmer for using their product.
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by jmmcy on Saturday November 04, 2023 @11:37AM
(#38142016)
Be careful please. My mom got Parkinson’s at 52 and the increasing consensus is that roundup was the cause. She sprayed it all the time in the garden. I never believed that could have been the reason for her illness, but in Ireland, now, people increasingly point the finger at round up.
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by hrdwdmrbl on Saturday November 04, 2023 @11:37AM
(#38142013)
Can someone explain why they keep losing when all the evidence does seem to say that it isn’t problematic? Is it just politics?
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by flashback2199 on Saturday November 04, 2023 @11:42AM
(#38142056)
The story I read somewhere is that Bayer keep thinking if they just lay out the facts in court they will prevail like they do in Europe but that's not how things go in American courts where the legal team's ability to manage the court's emotions wins the day. I have no idea how much truth there is to it.
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by rufus_foreman on Saturday November 04, 2023 @12:35PM
(#38142595)
They've lost 3 recent cases, before that they won 9 in a row: https://www.reuters.com/legal/bayer-investor-calls-rethink-a....
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by voisin on Saturday November 04, 2023 @02:38PM
(#38143889)
Any idea what was different between the cases? The article isn’t clear.
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by theluketaylor on Saturday November 04, 2023 @12:33PM
(#38142583)
We should be pouring money into herbicide-free weed control, like laser equipped robots (which I swear is not a sci-fi fever dream)
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by rasz on Saturday November 04, 2023 @02:49PM
(#38143982)
>can't easily be mowed
Not for Andrew Camarata
Brush mowing an island https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP1HkicY0Eo
Track loader, new water pump and mow field https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaI7kWav8SE
Re:Monsanto hit with $175M verdict against Roundup
by jemmyw on Saturday November 04, 2023 @03:39PM
(#38144411)
I've used a vinegar based weed killer. Not a home mix, a proper horticultural strength product. For a large area that is already under some control it works very well as it'll kill all the seedlings outright. For larger plants it varies in effectiveness. If you've already sprayed with roundup you could switch to control with horticultural vinegar.
On the safety front, it would burn your skin if left on for a few minutes. Other than that I've found no information that it's bad, it is really just very strong apple cider vinegar.
I've been using these chemicals for the past couple of years, buying them in concentrate, diluting it inside a backpack sprayer, and applying it to 2 acres of uneven land that I don't want to let turn into a forest but also can't easily be mowed.
Is there a better / safer chemical? Or different way to achieve the same result?
Covering the land with salt would kill all plant life and trees and is "natural" and "safe for humans" but much worse for the land and soil from what I've read.
Edit: Guessing the downvotes are people who disapprove of herbicides. Fair. But the fact is there's demand for these products. If this chemical is banned, another one will pop up and there's no guarantee that it will be safer or better for us or the environment.