Statement on Caranci Appeal
On May 8, 2025, the Superior Court of Pennsylvania upheld the verdict in Monsanto v. Caranci, an October 2023 trial that took place in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas (PCCP). Our statement:
“We disagree with the Court’s ruling and will consider our legal options for further review. The Caranci trial was marred by significant and reversible legal and evidentiary errors, including the Court’s undisclosed communication with the jury during deliberations, that unfairly prejudiced the company and distracted from the causation issues in this case. This verdict and the unconstitutionally excessive damage award cannot stand because both are at odds with the extensive weight of scientific evidence and the consistent assessments of expert regulators and their scientists worldwide. It is clear that when these trials focus fairly on the science and regulatory consensus, the company prevails. The company has secured favorable outcomes in 17 of the last 25 trials, and has resolved the overwhelming majority of claims in this litigation.
The company maintains that the court should have applied the unanimous ruling by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals in Schaffner, which concluded that federal law expressly preempts the failure-to-warn claim at the center of this case and other Roundup cases in Pennsylvania The company now has a petition pending before the U.S. Supreme Court seeking review in Durnell – and holding petitions in L. Johnson, and Salas – on the cross-cutting federal preemption question. If granted, the company expects a decision on the merits during the 2025-2026 session of the Supreme Court.
The company stands behind Roundup™ and the overwhelming weight of scientific research and assessments by leading health regulators and scientists, including both the EPA and the EU, that support the safety of glyphosate-based products. No regulatory authority that has independently evaluated glyphosate has found it to be carcinogenic. Indeed, the EU Commission re-approved glyphosate for 10 years, following the favorable scientific assessments by its health and safety agencies, including the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) and European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), which ‘did not identify any critical areas of concern’ impacting public health or the environment in their review of glyphosate in July 2023. Additionally, courts outside of the U.S. in Australia have dismissed lawsuits involving similar claims, finding that the weight of scientific evidence does not support a link between glyphosate and cancer.”