25 y/o paper extolling the safety of Monsanto's Roundup retracted from journal

[thewayne]

This could have some interesting ramifications.

The paper was published in the journal Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology in 2000, and recently revealed emails from within Monsanto show that eight people within that corp wrote the paper and it was proposed that Monsanto people write another paper and have academics edit and apply their names to it.

The paper was cited by the Environmental Protection Agency in approving Roundup for common use, saying it "posed no health risks to humans – no cancer risks, no reproductive risks, no adverse effects on development of endocrine systems in people or animals."

I remember a news program, perhaps British, was interviewing a Monsanto exec who was praising the safety of Roundup, claiming that it was perfectly safe to drink. The interviewer pulled out a transparent glass of clear liquid, and said it was a glass of Roundup, and offered it to the exec to drink as a proof. The exec blanched and blustered and didn't drink it.

An EPA spokesperson said that they did not rely solely on this paper to clear Roundup for use.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/05/monsanto-roundup-safety-study-retracted

https://science.slashdot.org/story/25/12/09/053254/science-journal-retracts-study-on-safety-of-monsantos-roundup

Comments

[dewline]

"Some interesting ramifications" is going to be an understatement, I expect.

[mtbc]

Here's hoping.

[thewayne]

Dunno.  Monsanto has bought a lot of lobbyists and coopted a lot of scientists over the years, plus skewed a lot of studies.  Hard to say if one paper being retracted will make much of a diff.

[disneydream06]

Interesting. :o :o :o

Safe to drink? LMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hugs, Jon

[thewayne]

I heard it was very funny to watch.  I think I saw the excerpt, but it was a long time ago.

[disneydream06]

I guess we know where The Felon got his ideas for Covid treatments. :o :o :o

[moonhare]

The exec should have replied “I said it was safe, not that it tastes good,” and pushed it back with a laugh…

[kaishin108]

That's awful that those finding were relied on for so long. That's how big companies are with studies, bleck.

I say save the bees, boycott Monsanto RoundUp!!

I remember using it in the 90s. When they said it was safe for dogs and the next day my dog goes out there then got very very sick!

So misleading, Grrrr.

[silveradept]

Well, that's delightful, especially since I've bought some form of its generic compound for using on my own weeds. If it's actually far more harmful to me than I would have thought, then some other product will have to go in as weed killer. Or I'll have to be much more careful with using it.