Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 3/5/18

Agribusiness giant Monsanto and attorneys representing cancer patients who argue that exposure to the company's flagship weed killer Roundup caused them to develop non-Hodgkin's lymphoma are in court this week for a high-stakes legal proceeding about scientific research. The parties are meeting in San Francisco for a weeklong hearing about whether decades of evidence support a direct link between cancer and glyphosate, the active agent in Roundup, Pro Ag's Liz Crampton writes. 

Science vs. science: A federal judge will hear from a deep bench of scientists and other experts to determine which evidence a jury should later consider if the case heads to trial. It's a make-or-break moment: If the judge doesn't find some experts to be qualified or their theories valid, it could be a death blow to either side's case. 

Ripples overseas: The proceeding, known as a Daubert hearing, has the potential to affect the future use of glyphosate in the U.S. and abroad. In the European Union, officials last year approved the renewal of the license for the herbicide for another five years after fierce debate; they are now closely watching the California proceedings. Liz will also be on the ground in San Francisco providing regular updates.

Dicamba report: Separately, federal documents indicate that the Environmental Protection Agency decreased protections for crops and wildlife habitats based on research Monsanto supplied about how far the weed killer dicamba can drift, the Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting writes.