Health Canada’s re-evaluation of glyphosate and the Monsanto Papers

This media backgrounder from the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (CAPE) examines the 'Monsanto Papers'—discovery documents from U.S. litigation—and their implications for Health Canada's 2017 re-evaluation of glyphosate. The document alleges that Monsanto engaged in ghostwriting scientific papers, manipulating public perception of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), and collaborating with regulatory bodies to maintain the registration of glyphosate.

• Internal documents known as the 'Monsanto Papers' suggest the company used deceptive tactics to invalidate the June 2015 IARC designation of glyphosate as 'probably carcinogenic to humans.' These tactics included providing a 'high-quality draft' to scientist Henry Miller for a critical piece in Forbes Magazine and strategizing to have Monsanto employees act as 'ghost writers' for publications on animal data cited by IARC.
• The Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) of Canada relied on several studies in its 2017 glyphosate re-evaluation that were allegedly ghostwritten or edited by Monsanto scientists without proper credit. Examples include a genotoxicity review by Kier and Kirkland (2013), a cancer review paper by Greim et al. (2015), and a study by Williams Kroes and Munro (2000).
• Monsanto Canada allegedly collaborated with industry associations like CropLife Canada to influence the Canadian federal government and encourage the IARC to change its practices. Additionally, the company commissioned Intertek Scientific & Regulatory Consultancy to assemble expert panels to rebut IARC's conclusions, resulting in a supplement in 'Critical Reviews in Toxicology' that later received an 'Expression of Concern' regarding its declarations of interest.
• In the U.S., the lawsuit Dewayne Johnson v Monsanto Company resulted in a jury verdict on August 10, 2018, awarding damages (later reduced to $78 million) after finding that exposure to Roundup contributed to the plaintiff's non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The briefing also notes allegations of 'collusion' between Monsanto and U.S. EPA officials, with whom the PMRA collaborated during its own re-evaluation.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (2018). Health Canada’s re-evaluation of glyphosate and the Monsanto Papers. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Media-Backgrounder-Monsanto-Papers-Nov-12-2018-FINAL2.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Health Canada’s re-evaluation of glyphosate and the Monsanto Papers. 2018. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Media-Backgrounder-Monsanto-Papers-Nov-12-2018-FINAL2.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Health Canada’s re-evaluation of glyphosate and the Monsanto Papers |date=November 2018 |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Media-Backgrounder-Monsanto-Papers-Nov-12-2018-FINAL2.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironment2018health, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Health Canada’s re-evaluation of glyphosate and the Monsanto Papers}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, year = {2018}, month = nov, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Media-Backgrounder-Monsanto-Papers-Nov-12-2018-FINAL2.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }