No menu items!

COSTA RICA'S LEADING ENGLISH LANGUAGE NEWSPAPER

HomeArchiveU.S. Companies Lose Pesticide Court Case

U.S. Companies Lose Pesticide Court Case

MANAGUA (AFP) – Three U.S.- based multinational companies have been ordered by a Nicaraguan court to pay $82.9 million to 80 banana workers who became sick after using the pesticide Nemagon in banana plantations, a judicial source announced Wednesday.

The Third Civil Judge of the Man agua District, Vida Benavente, ruled against the North American companies Shell Chemical Company, Dole Food Company Inc. and Standard Fruit Company, which was later acquired by Dole Food Company Inc., an employee of the judicial office confirmed for the AFP.

The judgment favors the banana workers with a payment of approximately $1 million each, for health damages caused by the use of Nemagon in the banana plantations that the U.S. companies operated in Nicaragua in the 1970s.

This is the second trial Nicaraguan banana workers affected by Nemagon have won in Managua against North American companies. On December 11, 2001, a Nicaraguan court ordered Shell, Dole and Dow Agro Sciences to compensate sick banana workers with $489 million, but the businesses refused to pay the money.

THESE cases represent only a portion of the total compensation cases filed by more than 17,000 Nicaraguan banana workers in the last six years against eight international companies from the United States.

The ruling made by judge Benavente was supported by medical exams of those affected that show evidence of ailments caused by the pesticide.

Specialized doctors testified about the harmful effects Nemagon has on human beings, including kidney problems, skin problems, infertility, inflamed internal organs, cancer and physical birth defects.

Approximately 600 people have died in the last 10 years from sicknesses caused by Nemagon contamination, according to leaders of the banana workers.

ABOUT 2,000 victims of the pesticide walked to the capital city February to request the support of the government of President Enrique Bolaños against the companies that have ignored the Nicaraguan ruling.

The defendants are Dole, Shell Chemical (subsidiary of the Houston, Texas-based Shell Oil Company), Chiquita Brands International, Standard Fruit Company (which merged with Dole), Del Monte Tropical Fruit Company, Occidental Chemical Corporation, Dow Agro Sciences and Aka del Monte Foods.

Shell, Dole and Dow Agro Sciences, the three companies that were ordered in December 2001 to pay damages, have taken legal actions against the beneficiaries, whom they accuse of fraud for presenting falsified medical exams

 

Trending Now

Remittances to Central America Surge 20% Amid U.S. Deportation Fears

Family remittances in Central America grew by around 20% in the first half of 2025, according to official data—a rise that experts attribute to...

Keylor Navas Joins Pumas UNAM in Major Liga MX Transfer

Keylor Navas has agreed to become the new goalkeeper for Pumas UNAM, marking one of the biggest signings in recent Liga MX history. The...

Costa Rica Tops Latin America in Attracting Foreign Millionaires

Costa Rica is a country that attracts millionaires. Projections indicate that by the end of 2025, a total of 350 foreign millionaires will have...

Costa Rica Celebrates 201st Annexation Anniversary With New Nicoya Park

Nearly 200 people joined the Municipality of Nicoya this Sunday to inaugurate a new park at the Annexation Monument, an initiative that blends recreation,...

Costa Rica Faces Economic Blow as Intel, Pfizer, and Qorvo Announce Restructuring

Intel announced that it will shut down its chip assembly and test plant in Costa Rica, part of a broader global restructuring aimed at...

Venezuela Accuses El Salvador of Torturing Deported Migrants From U.S.

Sexual abuse, daily beatings, rotten food: The government of Nicolás Maduro on Monday denounced “torture” against Venezuelan migrants sent by the United States to...
Avatar
spot_img
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Coffee Maker Chorreador
Costa Rica Travel Insurance
Costa Rica Rocking Chait
Costa Rica Travel

Latest News from Costa Rica