Key Takeaways
- Wisner Baum, a nationally recognized plaintiffs' law firm, has opened an investigation into atrazine exposure claims, focusing on individuals diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) or other cancers after prolonged occupational or environmental contact with the herbicide.
- The investigation targets farmers, pesticide applicators, agricultural families, and rural residents who may have been exposed to atrazine through spraying operations, contaminated water sources, or agricultural runoff over extended periods.
- A 2025 IARC evaluation classified atrazine as “probably carcinogenic to humans”, citing evidence of oxidative stress, inflammation, and immunosuppression — providing scientific grounding for the legal investigation.
- Atrazine has been detected in drinking water sources across Midwestern agricultural states, with a 2025 University of Nebraska Medical Center study finding contamination in 93.75% of sampled wells in Cass County and above 80% in multiple other Nebraska farming counties.
- The investigation also examines Syngenta's conduct as atrazine's manufacturer, including questions about whether adequate warnings were provided to those most exposed to the herbicide's potential health risks.
Wisner Baum, a nationally recognized plaintiffs' law firm with a track record in major agricultural chemical litigation, has opened an investigation into potential claims involving atrazine, one of the most widely used herbicides in American agriculture. The firm is reviewing cases from individuals diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) or other cancers following prolonged occupational or environmental exposure to the herbicide, with attorneys Timothy A. Loranger and Pedram Esfandiary leading the investigation.
Who Wisner Baum Is Investigating On Behalf Of
The investigation focuses on people who worked in agriculture, handled pesticides professionally, or lived near heavily farmed areas and were later diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma or other cancers. Atrazine exposure occurs primarily through occupational and environmental contact — including spraying operations, contaminated drinking water, and agricultural runoff — meaning farmworkers, pesticide applicators, and rural residents near intensively farmed land represent the core affected populations.
“Many of the people potentially affected spent years working to feed the country and may never have realized the dangers they were being exposed to. As more research emerges linking atrazine to non-Hodgkin lymphoma, families deserve answers about whether these risks were known and adequately disclosed,” said Pedram Esfandiary, partner and trial attorney at Wisner Baum.
The Scientific Basis Behind the Wisner Baum Investigation
The investigation is supported by a growing body of scientific evidence. A 2025 evaluation by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified atrazine as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” concluding that the chemical causes oxidative stress, induces inflammation, and acts as an immunosuppressant. A 2025 University of Nebraska Medical Center study analysed more than 27,000 groundwater samples and 31,000 surface water observations, finding atrazine in 93.75% of sampled wells in Cass County, Nebraska, and contamination rates above 80% in Phelps and Clay counties. The EPA estimates approximately 72 million pounds of atrazine are applied annually in the United States, with the chemical remaining stable in water for more than 200 days.
“What makes atrazine especially alarming is the scale and duration of exposure. This is not an isolated chemical confined to industrial settings; it has been detected in drinking water sources and agricultural communities across the country for decades,” said Timothy A. Loranger, attorney and senior partner at Wisner Baum.
Wisner Baum's Focus on Manufacturer Accountability
Beyond individual health claims, the Wisner Baum investigation is examining questions of manufacturer accountability. Atrazine is produced by Syngenta, which has previously reached a $105 million settlement related to atrazine filtration costs for more than 1,000 public water systems across multiple states. Syngenta has denied wrongdoing and maintains that atrazine is safe when used as directed. Atrazine has been banned in at least 60 countries, including in the EU since 2004, where regulators concluded that groundwater contamination was ubiquitous and unpreventable. Despite this, it remains widely available in the United States.
“For decades, atrazine has been applied on a massive scale across American farmland while questions about its long-term health effects continued to grow. When substantial scientific evidence begins pointing to a possible connection between chronic exposure and devastating diseases like cancer, the public deserves transparency, accountability, and a full examination of what manufacturers knew about those risks,” Esfandiary said.
