Paraquat

also see Industry Shenanigans p.2, nervous system effects/Parkinson's p.2,  Legal/Litigation

 SNAP comment: Historically there were16 paraquat containing pesticides registered in Canada, even some as domestic products (to be used by consumers). The last to be taken off the market was Gramoxone 200 SL on 2022-03-08. As a result, this product, classified as restricted, might still be in use because the PMRA only controls sales not use. Typically a pesticide is used for several years after it is taken off the market as users stockpile it. Research on glaciers indicates that peak deposition for banned organochlorines occurs at least 1 decade after they had been banned and maximum use had occurred in North America.       Looking at the tons still used in the US, it is likely still coming in as contamination on imported US foods. It is good to remember that paraquat was registered in Canada in 1963, it is one of the chemicals that was grandfathered and remained on the market after the IBT fraud scandal of 1980, when no pesticide on the market had credible safety data. It took 43 years more to ban it. If anything, the Canadian regulatory system is far from fast. Under the authority given to Cabinet in Bill C-30,  I supose that Cabinet may decide to bring it back in spite of documented risks and negative health effects...

Paraquat Linked to Parkinson’s Disease in U.S. County with Among the Highest Rates, Supporting Call for a (US) Ban    (Beyond Pesticides, June 10, 2026) Adding to the wide body of science connecting the weed killer paraquat to deleterious health and environmental effects, Investigate Midwest recently released an investigative news article connecting air emissions of paraquat from chemical plants in the Mississippi Basin to Parkinson’s disease, among other adverse health effects. The herbicide is also fatal to humans with a single sip, as documented in the article, entitled “This herbicide is so toxic it’s been banned in over 70 countries. But plants in the South are releasing it into the air.”      According to previous data from the U.S. Geological Survey, approximately 11 to 17 million pounds of paraquat were sprayed annually in 2017, which may be much higher in recent years... Research has proven that paraquat is not needed for agriculture.   Use of the cheap, broad-spectrum herbicide has more than tripled between 2006 and 2017, a surge the EPA has attributed to a rise in resistance to another popular herbicide called glyphosate.

SNAP Comment: Although paraquat was a restricted pesticide in Canada in the last years of registration, there were 18 historically registered products. The last registration expired on 8 March 2022. Looking at the tons still used in the US, it is likely still coming in as contamination on imported US foods. It is good to remember that paraquat was registered in Canada in 1963, it is one of the chemicals that was grandfathered and remained on the market after the IBT fraud scandal of 1980, when no pesticide on the market had credible safety data. It took 43 years more to ban it. If anything, the Canadian regulatory system is far from fast. Under the authority given to Cabinet in Bill C-30,  I supose that Cabinet may decide to bring it back in spite of documented risks and negative health effects .

For decades, regulators knew paraquat was harmful but failed to address the risks (Environmental Working Group, 16 April 2026)  This article is presented as a timeline or regulatory action and research findings. Good illustration of a case where, as far as a regulatory agency is concerned, there is never enough evidence of harm...... SNAP COMMENT:. It is still used in the USA. Paraquat has been linked to Parkinson's Disease. 

Report on Weed Killer Paraquat Identifies True Hazard Costs from Manufacturing to Use (Beyond Pesticides, November 6, 2025)    The report, Designed to Kill: Who Profits from Paraquat, and accompanying interactive storymap, unpacks the supply chain of the infamous herbicide paraquat and underscores the true costs of pesticide products, from manufacturing to use in the fields.     This report highlights, among other notable points, “that every stage of the paraquat supply chain—which spans the globe—emits greenhouse gases and toxic air pollutants.” With SinoChem as the lead producer and player in the paraquat market, the Chinese government-owned pesticide company’s supply chain “includes fossil fuel extraction in Equatorial Guinea and Saudi Arabia, chemical manufacturing in India, Germany, and the United Kingdom, international chemical shipping, and final formulation and distribution in the United States.”     Paraquat is not currently manufactured in the U.S., accounting for imports of “between 40 and 156 million pounds of paraquat each year, according to the last eight years of pesticide import records available from the private database.” Despite the publicity surrounding “Making America Healthy Again,” the Trump administration exempted China from “reciprocal” tariffs on paraquat dichloride imports in April 2025, according to the report.    SNAP Comment: Considering the amount used in the USA, paraquat likely still contaminates food imported in Canada.

Weedkiller maker moves to settle suit over Parkinson’s disease claims    Syngenta has been besieged by lawsuits from people claiming its product caused the neurological condition (The Guardian, 15 April, 2025)     'Besieged by thousands of lawsuits alleging that its paraquat weedkiller causes Parkinson’s disease, its manufacturer, Syngenta, has entered into an agreement aimed at settling large swaths of those claims. “Syngenta believes there is no merit to the claims, but litigation can be distracting and costly. .."  Syngenta’s effort to settle the litigation before any high-profile trials comes after Monsanto’s owner, Bayer, was rocked by similar litigation alleging its Roundup weedkiller causes cancer.' ... Paraquat has become one of the most widely used weedkilling chemicals in the world. In the United States, the chemical is used in orchards, wheat fields, pastures where livestock graze, cotton fields and elsewhere.   Internal Syngenta documents revealed by the Guardian and the New Lede show the company was aware many years ago of scientific evidence that paraquat could affect the brain in ways that cause Parkinson’s, and that it secretly sought to influence scientific research to counter the evidence of harm.'   SNAP Comment: It is my understanding that settling a lawsuit before it gets to trial ensures that the evidence never makes it into the public eye. Victims who settle are generally asked to sign agreements not to share any information.

Class-action lawsuit over pesticide's ties to Parkinson's certified in Canadian court (by Megan Devlin, DH Canada, Aug 14 2024, 'Individuals in Canada outside of Quebec who’ve been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease after using Gramoxone products anytime after July 1, 1963, can join the class action suit. According to Parkinson’s Canada, Paraquat is no longer available for sale in Canada after being voluntarily discontinued by Canadian manufacturer Syngenta. The substance is also banned in 30 countries worldwide, and in 2012, France recognized Parkinson’s as an occupational disease among farmers who had been exposed to pesticides for many years.
Parkinson’s Canada also pointed to one study out of the US suggesting those who used paraquat or rotenone in their work were 2.5 times more likely to have Parkinson’s than those who did not.'

'Burns me to a crisp': Farmers allege link between popular herbicide paraquat and Parkinson's disease  Internal documents show the manufacturer has been aware of concerns for decades.(By Cho Park and Jared Kofsky, ABC Newss, November 28, 2023)

filed under nervous system effects/ Parkinson's p. 2, and paraquat

The toxic weed killer linked to Parkinson's Disease (EWG) 2 minutes video   Paraquat comes to our food supply via crops sprayed with it like pistachios, almonds, tomatoes and more.

Popular POM juice producer among California's leading users of paraquat (EWG news release, April 2024)   'Toxic weedkiller, linked to Parkinson’s, banned in over 60 countries.    Wonderful’s brands include POM pomegranate juice, Landmark Vineyards wine and Fiji Water, among many others.    In 2021 alone, Wonderful sprayed more than 56,000 pounds of paraquat on California fields where it grows pistachios, almonds and pomegranates, according to state and county records analyzed by EWG.     Paraquat is mostly used by U.S. growers to clear fields of weeds and leftover crops before planting almonds, corn, peanuts, soybeans, wine grapes and other crops. The herbicide can remain in soil for years.      It can also linger in dust or drift on air currents, creating exposure risks for residents in nearby communities. A recent EWG investigation found that Latinos in some California communities with high poverty rates are exposed to far higher amounts of paraquat than people elsewhere.    Only the J.G. Boswell Company, a major crop grower, used more paraquat in California than Wonderful in 2021. Boswell applied more than 58,000 pounds of paraquat on cotton, tomatoes and other crops.      The New Lede, an independent journalism initiative of EWG, and The Guardian recently revealed that Syngenta actively sought to mislead Environmental Protection Agency regulators about the link between paraquat and Parkinson’s     EWG is sponsoring state legislation that would ban the use of paraquat in California by January 2026.'

Revealed: The secret push to bury a weedkiller’s link to Parkinson’s disease    Internal documents from chemical giant Syngenta reveal tactics to sponsor sympathetic scientific papers and mislead regulators about unfavorable research   (by Carey Gillam, The Guardian, 2 June 2023)     'Those documents showed that Syngenta was aware decades ago of evidence that exposure to paraquat could impair the central nervous system, triggering tremors and other symptoms in experimental animals similar to those suffered by people with Parkinson’s.    They also showed that Syngenta worked covertly to keep a highly regarded scientist studying causes of Parkinson’s from sitting on an advisory panel for the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the chief US regulator for paraquat and other pesticides. The new documents have emerged at a sensitive time for Syngenta. In less than six months, the Swiss chemical giant faces a first-ever trial in litigation brought by US farmers and others who allege the company’s paraquat weedkiller causes Parkinson’s.'