Winter 2026 Issue Mission Food & Water Watch fights for the safe and healthy food, clean water, and livable climate we all deserve. We empower people to take on destructive corporations and the policymakers who enable them, in order to stop pollution, defend democracy, and protect the planet — now and for future generations.
Thank You for Fighting for Safe Food, Clean Water, and a Livable Climate!
SHINING A LIGHT ON TOXIC PESTICIDES. PEOPLE DESERVE JUSTICE
WINTER 2026 ISSUE The Supreme Court Sided with Bayer. Now What?
Eye-Opening Map Shows the Link Between Glyphosate and Cancer
Jana Good Boosts Her Impact with DAF Gifts and Sharing Our Work with Friends
A MESSAGE FOR YOU In our work, sometimes I have to share hard news. This is one of those times. You may have heard that this year, the Trump-appointed Supreme Court made a terrible ruling. It granted all pesticide companies immunity from health-related lawsuits brought by people who became ill from exposure to their toxic products. The harms of pesticides, factory farming, and corporate control over the way our country grows the food we eat — issues like these are core to Food & Water Watch’s work. I started this organization to pro- tect our most important resources, our food and water, and to build the political power to take on corporate abusers and policies that endanger our health. Compassionate people like you have been at the heart of this critical work every step of the way. I’m so grateful for your care and commitment! So, here's the thing: there is a way forward. By pressuring our elected leaders to do what's right and choose to protect people's health over pesticide company profits, by working together, we can restore people's right to justice. Thank you for never giving up on building a sustainable food future.
THE SUPREME COURT SIDED WITH BAYER. NOW WHAT?
In a devastating decision for public health, earlier this year, the Supreme Court sided with pesticide company Bayer over people alleging harm caused by its dangerous product. Their ruling closes the courthouse doors on tens of thousands of suffering patients with illnesses linked to toxic agricultural chemicals, blocking the most viable pathway for holding manufacturers accountable for making them sick. Together, we can counteract this terrible ruling. Our country is drenched in pesticides, and it’s making us sick In recent decades, Bayer has used its market dominance to force farmers to rely on its pesticide. The company makes Roundup, the most widely used pesticide in the U.S. It also sells Roundup- resistant soy, corn, and cotton seeds, which have encouraged farmers to apply more and more Roundup. Cover: Matt Wechsler is an Emmy-nominated environmental documen- tary filmmaker. He partners with Food & Water Watch for film screenings to educate and spread awareness about the harms of our food and farm system, and what all of us can do to create a healthier, more sustainable future. Learn more about Matt's work at hourglassfilms.com
Wenonah Hauter Founder & Executive Director
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The result? Roundup-resistant weeds, which led Bayer to peddle more of this weedkiller. The World Health Organization defines glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, as a probable carcinogen linked to a variety of health harms, including cancer. Food & Water Watch’s recent analysis finds that high glyphosate use is linked to high rates of non- Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of blood cancer. This has had heartbreaking consequences for gardeners, landscapers, and farmers. Bayer’s push to escape accountability Bayer purchased Monsanto, the original maker of Roundup,
in 2018 and has since spent over $11 billion settling over 100,000 pesticide-related cancer lawsuits. To protect its bottom line, Bayer went on the offensive. It spent millions lobbying state and federal lawmakers to push for Cancer Gag Act bills, legislation that would give pesticide corporations immunity from health-related litigation. Working together, we rallied against the Cancer Gag Act and successfully defeated it in Iowa, where agricultural pesticide use is highly concentrated. It failed in ten more states and was also excluded from the House and Senate versions of the Farm Bill. So, Bayer took its poisonous cause to the Supreme Court. Monsanto Company v. Durnell John Durnell, a gardener in Missouri, sued Monsanto in state court in 2019, claiming that using Roundup for 20 years caused his non-Hodgkin
Above: Rain can’t stop people power! Despite wet weather, Senior Organizer Michaelyn Mankel (second from the left) and local activists gather in Des Moines, Iowa, for a rally to stop Bayer’s terrible Cancer Gag Act.
lymphoma, and there was no cancer warning on the prod- uct’s label to alert him of the danger. The jury awarded him over $1 million. Bayer appealed the case all the way up to the Trump-appointed Supreme Court. And in June, the Court sided with big business over people and the environment. The Court’s disastrous ruling prevents farmers, workers, and anyone affected from exercising their right to hold Bayer accountable for failing to warn them of health risks on labels, and blocks their ability to recover medical expenses, lost income, and other damages related to illnesses caused by its pesticides.
In Iowa, glyphosate blankets more than half the state. It’s one of only three states in the nation with rising cancer rates. Not-So-Fun Fact
Bayer - continue on Page 3 >
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People crowded into Iowa's Capitol rotunda in Des Moines to rally against Bayer's Cancer Gag Act, some bringing flowers and pictures to honor loved ones who have passed. By working together, we defeated the horrible bill in Iowa and 10 more states. After the Supreme Court's disasterous ruling in favor of Bayer, now we must come together to build support for federal bills that ensure people injured by toxic pesticides have access to legal recourse. Photo by Julie Russell-Steuart
legal pathway to hold manufac- turers accountable.
Jersey introduced the Pesticide Injury Accountability Act, and Representatives Chellie Pingree of Maine and Thomas Massie of Kentucky introduced the No Immunity for Glyphosate Act. People across the country — including those in the agri- cultural heartland — oppose shielding chemical corpora- tions from liability. Passing these bills would ensure that people injured by toxic pesti- cides will once again have a
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What’s worse, the ruling shields all pesticide companies from similar lawsuits. How to restore people’s right to justice The fight against toxic pesti- cides does not end here. Thanks in large part to the activism you powered , federal lawmakers have introduced bills to make things right. Senator Cory Booker of New
People harmed by toxic pesticides deserve justice
Urge your elected leaders to protect people from pesticides.
fwwat.ch/pesticides
Matt Wechsler Partners with Food & Water Watch to Fix Our Food System FROM THE FIELD Emmy-nominated filmmaker
The great thing about working with Food & Water Watch is that you’ve championed all my films. You’ve utilized them exactly as they’re
Matt Wechsler’s work illustrates the terrible effects Big Ag has had on our food, water, and environment, and he’s been instrumental in inspiring people to take action in their own communities. Matt is the director of three documentaries — Sustainable (2016), Right to Harm (2019), and The Jungle (2024) — that expose the intertwined crises of corporate greed, environmental damage, and exploitation that define the way our country grows and raises the food we feed our families.
intended — for impact in local communities. And you’ve screened films all across the country in an effort to pass good legislation. That’s the dream for a filmmaker. Filmmaker Matt Wechlser was one of our 2026 Honorees at our Against All Odds annual benefit. Photo by Michael O'Shea
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Eye-Opening Map Shows the Link Between Glyphosate and Cancer
Food & Water Watch Research Director Amanda Starbuck spoke with Investigate Midwest about this map and why we need protective pesticide policies. See her interview at fwwat.ch/amanda
The World Health Organiza- tion classified glyphosate* as probably carcinogenic to humans over ten years ago. It specifically linked exposure to non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), a type of blood cancer. Our Food & Water Watch research team wanted to see how glyphosate has impacted the health of farming commu- nities in this country. They took cancer incident data from the National Cancer Institute and overlaid it on a map of counties that spray the most glyphosate on commodity crops such as corn and soybeans.
Their analysis found an alarm- ing correlation , particularly in Iowa and the Upper Midwest. Of the counties spraying the most glyphosate per square mile, that have reported NHL rates: • 60% have NHL rates above the national average. • 71% have late-stage NHL rates above the national average. • In Iowa, 82% of high glypho- sate counties have NHL rates above the national average, and half are “hot spots” — in the top 20% for NHL rates nationwide. This map underscores not only the need to scale back chemical pesticide use, but to pass federal legislation that
protects the rights of people who have been poisoned by these toxic products. Moreover, we need a sustain- able food future — one where we can grow healthy food without poisoning farming communities and our environ- ment in the process.
See the Map
You can use this interac- tive map to inform your- self, engage
in local discussions, and advocate for policies that protect our health. fwwat.ch/cancermap
*Glyphosate is the active ingredient in the Roundup pesticide.
Livable Future LIVE! is for YOU UPCOMING EVENTS
Learn More and Save Your Seat! fwwat.ch/live
COMING UP November 5, 7 p.m. EST
Our monthly virtual educa- tional series features the latest environmental news and shares what you can do to protect our food, water, and climate — and it’s free to all Food & Water Watch members!
Post-Election Recap: What’s Next? Join us as we break down what the election results mean for food, water, and climate policy, and how YOU can advocate for a livable future for all.
FOOD & WATER WATCH / ACTION — LIVABLE FUTURE NOW | 4
YOUR FOOD & WATER WATCH AT WORK
ACTION SHOT!
Thanks to you, this summer, Food & Water Watch partnered with New York State Sena- tor Kristen Gonzalez to lead the “Stop Data Centers” tour. This nine-day, multi-city event visited thirteen sites across New York State that either have existing hyperscale data centers or are facing pending proposals. Along the tour, we heard directly from residents living near data centers, met with community leaders, and attended town halls, press events, and rallies. Immersive experiences like this go a long way to show why we need to stop the AI data center frenzy and encourage more people to urge New York Governor Hochul to sign the moratorium bill we worked together to pass. Read more about your impact on stopping data centers. fwwat.ch/dcimpact
Organizers Melissa Hoffmann (left), Laura Shindell (center), and local advocate Dave Rosen (right) visit DataBank's data center campus in Orangeburg, New York. DataBank is planning to expand this facility, which sits right next to little league baseball fields, an assisted living facility, and Lake Tappan.
FEATURED VICTORY Thank you for protecting communities in Southern California from a hydrogen pipeline!
This past summer, SoCalGas, the nation's largest natural gas distribution utility, canceled the Angeles Link Project, new pipelines that would have moved hydrogen across Los Angeles and other parts of Southern California. These pipelines would have posed severe safety threats. Hydrogen is highly flammable, can leak more easily than natu- ral gas, and can explode when mixed with air. Together with you, Food & Water Watch strongly opposed this project and SoCalGas’s terrible plan to pass $266 million in project-related costs onto ratepayers. That would have meant higher
utility bills for communities in Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties.
This is a massive victory for Ange- lenos who don’t want dangerous hydrogen pipelines in their commu- nities. Instead of relying on false promises from the fossil fuel industry, we need to be investing in renew- able clean energy. — Los Angeles Organizing Manager Andrea Vega
Andrea Vega
Scan this QR code to read your Top Livable Future Victories of 2026 and see more of your impact. fwwat.ch/2026wins See More of Your Generosity at Work!
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DONOR SPOTLIIGHT Jana Good Boosts Her Impact with DAF Gifts and Sharing Our Work with Friends Please introduce yourself to our readers. I’m Jana Good, and I live in Oakland, California. I’ve been interested in environmental causes for as long as I can remember, perhaps because I feel so fortunate to live near our East Bay Regional Parks — in about ten minutes, I can be hiking in the hills, feeling miles away from civilization. How did you hear about Food & Water Watch, and what motivated you to make your first gift? When our daughter was in college, she was searching for an original topic for her environmental economics thesis. Her interest in factory farming issues led her to Food & Water Watch. She reached out and had a great conversation with with one of your researchers, who suggested she study whether California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard had inadvertently increased the number of dairy cows in our state. She was so impressed by your researcher and Food & Water Watch that she encouraged us to become donors. How do the issues Food & Water Watch works on impact you directly? Our family has become a vegetarian household. Our initial reason was related to climate change, but as we learned more about factory farming, animal cruelty and safe environmental conditions also influence our choice. The work you do on these issues is incredibly important to us. You donate through a donor-advised fund (DAF). Why is this method of giving attractive to you? I like that giving through our DAF has made us more generous and more impactful. Every December, we decide our "Giving Budget" and donate appreciated stock to our fund. It's advantageous from a tax standpoint, and it encourages us to make intentional decisions about how much we plan to give each year.
Jana and her husband Bruce hiking in the East Bay Regional Parks in California.
We’ve been so impressed with Food & Water Watch that we hosted an event in our backyard to introduce our friends to your organization.
What do you hope to accomplish through your philanthropy? We've been more intentional with our giving in recent years. We think about our giving as a portfolio, i.e., what causes do we want to give to? And we identify the organizations we believe are most effective, such as Food & Water Watch. We've been placing larger bets with fewer organizations, hoping to have a greater impact. If you were talking to someone about giving to and getting involved with Food & Water Watch, what would you tell them? We’ve been so impressed with Food & Water Watch that we hosted an event in our backyard to introduce our friends to your organization. We wanted them to hear firsthand from your experts about your important work and become donors themselves. It was an easy-to-plan, low-key event. I encourage others to share Food & Water Watch’s work with their community. What gives you hope for the future? Right now feels pretty tough, honestly. What gives me hope is young people getting involved. We need more young people activated around the work Food & Water Watch is doing.
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Our country is drowning in pesticides, and the harmful impacts are widespread. More than 90% of people in the U.S. have signs of
pesticide chemicals in their blood or urine. In agricultural states, farmers and rural commu- nities are facing disproportionately high rates of illnesses like cancer and Parkinson’s that are linked to the chemicals sprayed onto fields. And chemical giant Bayer claims that 90% of Roundup lawsuits come from persons exposed to the pesti- cide during residential use. More than 100,000 people have sought justice through our legal system for health harms asso- ciated with pesticides. But the Supreme Court’s terrible ruling in Monsanto Company v. Durnell this year slammed the courthouse doors shut on the sick and suffering, shielding all pesticide companies from being held accountable for harms caused by their dangerous products. This is where you come in. Your generosity will work to build power for legislation that would restore people’s right to hold pesticide corporations accountable for making them sick. We can do this. Together, our advocacy defeated the terrible Cancer Gag Act in 11 states, even in Big Ag strongholds such as Iowa.
Nick's Story Nick is a passionate Food & Water Watch volunteer, working to protect his family and community from factory farm pollution. He's pictured here with his mom, Pam, and a photo of Tammy, Nick's sister who passed away from cancer at age 56. Nick grew up on his family farm in Iowa. In the past few decades, seventeen of his close family members have suffered from cancer. With the gallons and gallons of chemicals and herbicides he sees "going up and down the road everyday," he isn't surprised that Iowa has the fastest-growing rate of cancer incidence in the U.S.
My family has had a front row seat to the industrialization of farming. We've paid for it with our health.
Together, we can and must counteract the Court’s decision and pass laws that put people and our health over pesticide industry profits. YES! I want to restore justice to people harmed by toxic pesticides. I want to hold chemical companies accountable for their dangerous products. I want to build a sustainable food future.
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