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Roundup Unready - How Corporate interests are colluding to poison the world

And what YOU can do about it!

Meryl Dorey

— 9 min read
Roundup Unready - How Corporate interests are colluding to poison the world
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Today, I received a Substack from Dr Meryl Nass who is active on so many important health-related issues! It spoke about efforts in Congress to expand on the already ridiculously pro-BigAg protections inherent in FIFRA to basically indemnify these companies against litigation for the harms caused by toxic and dangerous pesticides and herbicides.

The risk from agricultural chemicals is not normally something I comment on, but the close alignment between the efforts to expand FIFRA’s rules and the 1986 Vaccine Injury Compensation Act (VICP) that introduced litigation protection for pHarma and all those involved with vaccines in the US is just too strong for me to ignore.

What is FIFRA?

FIFRA is one of those laws that sounds great on paper but, implementation is everything and it has been corrupted beyond recognition. Originally intended to protect Americans from the dangers of chemicals used in agriculture, it is now used to protect the manufacturers and pushers of these poisons from accountability for the harms caused to Americans (and indeed, people around the world who are exposed to these products).

The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) passed through Congress in 1947, superseding the 1910 Federal Insecticide Act. It established Federal regulation of pesticides and other agricultural chemicals and kept the responsibility for these products within the purview of the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture).

FIFRA was amended in 1972 as part of the Federal Environmental Pesticide Control Act (§ 136v(b)) which stopped States from imposing labeling or packaging requirements in addition to or different than those under FIFRA.

“A State shall not impose or continue in effect any requirements for labeling or packaging in addition to or different from those required under this subchapter.”

It also assigned responsibility for implementation of FIFRA rules and regulations to the newly-created (1970) EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). Under § 136v(b), if the EPA stated that an agricultural chemical was safe, then the States lost the right to demand manufacturers put warnings on the labels of these products stating otherwise. To misquote Jacinta Ardern - the EPA became the single source of truth on farm chemical safety.

If EPA ‘scientists’, who most likely are as much in the pocket of BigAg as those at HHS, were beholden to BigpHarma and said something was safe, then the States had no ability to put warnings on the labels to contradict them. You see where this is leading.

Liability Protection

There is now a strong effort, backed by the agricultural chemical manufacturers, to provide them with the same sort of liability shield enjoyed by pHarma since 1986.

Through many lawsuits, courts have used §136c(b) to mean that if the EPA had approved a chemical as being safe, those adversely affected by it were unable to sue.

But this has been inconsistently applied with some massive awards (nearly $2 billion US in one notable RoundUp case, run by Robert F Kennedy Jr) being decided against these companies.

RoundUp has been the main loser in these decisions but there are others such as Syngenta having to pay out over $500 million US over the last 10 years alone due to lawsuits against their products Atrazine, Paraquat and Viptera.

Now, these companies are seeing their profits evaporate as more and more legal decisions are going against them and they are applying pressure in Congress to get absolute protection from liability. Apparently, the Trump Administration is supporting these efforts in the name of reducing regulation.

The following table is an estimate of Bayer’s profit from RoundUp since 2021:

There are currently more than 16,000 unresolved claims against RoundUp and Bayer has had to set aside €16 Billion against any adverse decisions in those cases.

As a result, Bayer has hinted that it might cease production of RoundUp altogether unless it gets liability protection.

This is the market at work. If we don’t have regulation, supply and demand will prevail and Bayer will stop poisoning our food. That is the best possible outcome.

Money, Power and Greed

When I was in High School, Mel Brooks produced a film called Silent Movie. I can’t remember the entire theme but from memory, it was a fight against an evil corporation called Engulf and Devour. A funny aside was that there was no speaking in the movie at all (hence the name) apart from one word, spoken by the world-famous mime, Marcel Marceau! Beautiful irony.

But I digress. The premise of that film is that money, power and greed corrupt and that lesson has stayed with me through all the ensuing years.

Today, we can see this process in action all around us.

Below are the known amounts spent by Bayer in lobbying for liability protection in the US Congress. There would be other payments made by them which would not have been reported.

a. Federal Lobbying

b. PAC Contributions to Candidates

  • Bayer’s U.S. employee PAC (BAYERPAC) files quarterly reports; contributions range from tens to hundreds of thousands to federal candidates.

  • At the state/local level, employee PAC contributions increased from under $25k (2016–18) to between $70k–$144k per cycle (2020–2024).

  • In South Dakota, Rep. Dusty Johnson received $4,000 from Bayer-affiliated PACs this cycle ($1k in 2020 and 2022).

Considering the fact that President Trump ran on a platform of getting rid of corporate lobbyists buying of representatives, one has to wonder why this sort of Quid Pro Quo still continues?

But, as Dr Nass reported, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee passed FY 2026 Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill. If passed by Congress, it will provide full liability protection for these deadly and destructive products going forward.

The full committee is expected to vote on its passage in the next few days and, with all the pressure being brought to bear by BigAg, it will most likely pass along party lines (with Republicans voting yes and Democrats voting no) and then be sent to the Senate for markup and then, to Congress for a final vote and debate.

We are not helpless - nor are we hopeless

There are many actions we can take to make our voices heard and to defeat this proposed legislation/amendment. And those of us in Australia should be aware that what happens in the US absolutely WILL affect us here. That goes for other Western nations as well.

It’s time for us all to speak out and let those who have been put into positions of power by their constituents know that we hold them accountable for harm if they allow these evildoers to continue to harm us and our families.

Below is a list of the most important contacts who we should be getting in touch with, I have included several Attorneys General because they have been actively lobbying in support of this liability protection:

1. Congressional & AG Email Contacts

🏛️ Members of Congress (Appropriations Focus)

⚖️ State Attorneys General (Petitioners)

  • Nebraska AG – Email: ago.info.help@nebraska.gov

  • Iowa AG – Email: webteam@ag.iowa.gov

Other petitioning AG offices (AL, AR, GA, IN, LA, MT, ND, SC, SD) can be reached via their respective “Contact” pages found on each state’s official AG website.

In addition - you can Email Charles Smith at RDFRNotices@epa.gov to raise substantive, science-based concerns.

Write the EPA Administrator via administrator@epa.gov

I also suggest writing to both Robert F Kennedy Jr as head of HHS (and the lawyer leading multiple lawsuits against RoundUp and absolutely in opposition to its use through many years through his work on environmental issues) - I don’t have his direct email address but you can write to him via the HHS Contact Us Page and these messages will be routed to his office; and Lee Zeldin (no direct email address - administrator@epa.gov is probably the best contact-attention Mr Lee Zeldin), head of the EPA.

Template Letters

To help you with getting started, here are three template letters you can use to base your own communication on. For God’s sake, please DO NOT use this letter as is! It is a total waste of time. These people need to hear YOUR feelings, YOUR opinions and know about YOUR research. That is powerful.

Also, you do NOT need to be a US citizen or living in the United States to take part in this activism. Whatever happens there will affect us all - no matter where we live. So there are three templates - one for constituents of the representatives (people who live in their State or District), US Citizens regardless of where they live and one for people who are not citizens of the United States.

Template 1 - for US constituents of the Representative or Senator

Subject: Urgent Request: Oppose Overriding Public Safeguards in FIFRA Labeling Rule

Dear [Title & Name],

I am a constituent deeply concerned about the proposed EPA rule that would classify any state-required pesticide label warnings that differ from EPA assessments as “misbranding.” This rule, if finalized, will:

  1. Undermine state authority to act on new scientific evidence;

  2. Deny communities legal recourse in cases of harm from pesticide exposure; and

  3. Elevate corporate liability protection above public health and safety.

I respectfully ask that you:

  • Publicly oppose funding or implementation of this rule through your committee authority;

  • Encourage Congress to reject legislative preemption that strips states and individuals of accountability;

  • Support reforms to FIFRA ensuring that public health remains paramount and legal protections for citizens are restored.

As your constituent, I urge you to uphold the principle that corporate interests must never outweigh the safety of the people. Please contact me if you require more information or scientific evidence relevant to this rule.

Thank you for standing up for public transparency, democratic accountability, and community health.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

[City, State]

[Email or Phone]

🛠 How to Use

  • Customize the greeting for each recipient (e.g., “Dear Senator Murkowski” or “Dear Attorney General Hilgers”).

  • Add your story or evidence, such as health impacts in your area or scientific findings.

  • Send via official forms or direct email addresses above.

Template 2 - For US Citizens - Regardless of where you reside

Subject: Oppose Pesticide Liability Shield — Public Health Must Come Before Corporate Protection

Dear [Official’s Name or Title],

I am writing to you not as a constituent, but as a deeply concerned American citizen who is alarmed by recent federal efforts to insulate pesticide manufacturers from accountability—particularly through changes to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) and proposed EPA rulemaking that would override state-level labeling protections.

If enacted, these measures would:

  • Strip states and communities of the right to respond to new scientific evidence about pesticide harms.

  • Block injured individuals and families from seeking justice through the courts.

  • Entrench corporate immunity at the expense of public health, environmental safety, and democratic oversight.

As an American who values both scientific integrity and legal accountability, I strongly oppose any legislation or regulatory action—such as the proposed EPA rule or language in the FY26 Agriculture Appropriations Bill—that would prevent states from requiring their own health warnings on pesticides or limit citizens’ ability to sue manufacturers when harm occurs.

I urge you to:

  1. Reject any expansion of FIFRA preemption that protects chemical manufacturers at the expense of human safety and state sovereignty.

  2. Support reforms to FIFRA that restore the rights of individuals and local governments to respond to emerging science and protect their communities.

  3. Publicly oppose liability shield provisions in appropriations bills or EPA rulemaking that seek to silence public health concerns under the guise of regulatory consistency.

I may not live in your district or state, but the consequences of these decisions ripple through our entire nation—and beyond. Please take action to uphold transparency, protect health, and preserve access to legal remedies.

Thank you for your service to the public and for considering this urgent request.

Sincerely,

[Your Full Name]

[City, State]

[Email Address or Phone (optional)]

🔄 Customize As Needed

  • For EPA officials: Emphasize regulatory capture and science-based decision-making.

  • For Robert F. Kennedy Jr.: Highlight the conflict between public health leadership and expanded corporate immunity.

  • For Attorneys General: Reference their constitutional responsibility to protect the health and legal rights of their state’s residents—even across state lines.

Template 3 - for concerned non-US citizens or subjects

Subject: Global Consequences of U.S. Pesticide Deregulation

Dear [Name],

I write from [Country] to express my strong opposition to the EPA’s proposed rule that would prevent states from requiring stronger warnings on pesticide labels. U.S. policies carry significant global influence. We in [Country] feel the impact when U.S. regulatory agencies weaken safety standards. The ripple effect touches international trade, consumer safety, and our own public health.

I urge you to halt this rule and protect the right to transparency, legal accountability, and environmental health—not just in the United States, but worldwide.

Sincerely,

[Name], [City, Country]

Conclusion:

These companies are under the impression that their political donations are enough to enable them to instruct our representatives worldwide how to legislate and what we as free men and women can and cannot say or do about our own lives and families.

So far, they’ve been pretty right in that assumption. But only because we’ve allowed it.

Recent events have demonstrated clearly that when we speak up en masse, politicians listen. I guess votes count for more than money? Or am I being naive?

Please don’t let this opportunity pass you by. Take the time to write ONE single email and send it to all the addressees listed above. Wherever you live, whatever you do, your actions today can help ensure a cleaner, more toxin-free environment for you, your children and your world.

Please note - In the interest of full disclosure, I had the help of ChatGPT in sourcing references. I wrote this article myself however.

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