Investors fled shares in German chemicals and pharmaceuticals giant Bayer Monday, fearing a massive damages ruling against one of newly-acquired US firm Monsanto's flagship products could signal a wave of costly lawsuits.

The stock had plunged 11.5 percent to 82.60 euros ($94.47) by midday (1000 GMT), lopping around $10 billion off its market value.

A California jury on Friday awarded dying groundskeeper Dewayne Johnson damages of almost $290 million, saying Monsanto should have warned buyers that its flagship Roundup weedkiller could cause cancer.

While observers have predicted thousands of other suits could follow, Bayer said the jury's findings went against scientific evidence and that other courts might "arrive at different conclusions".

Nevertheless, "if it's a quarter of a billion dollars per case, you don't need to lose many lawsuits before it becomes quite expensive," said analyst Michael Leacock of MainFirst bank, pointing out that Monsanto faces some 4,000 US lawsuits at the state level and 450 so-called "multi-district" cases at the federal level.

"The total cost, in our view, could easily reach $10 billion" if Bayer were to settle out of court with a still larger number of plaintiffs, he predicted.

What's more, if Roundup is "seen or if it's thought by consumers to be dangerous, there's a risk to long-term business," he added -- a second reason for investors to shy away from Bayer for now.

The latest court decision came just over two months after Bayer sealed its $63-billion takeover of Monsanto, one of the largest in German corporate history.

Aware of the often poisonous reputation of the US firm, which makes genetically modified seeds and "crop protection" technologies like pesticides, Bayer plans to ditch the Monsanto name once the takeover is complete.

Environmentalists have vowed to keep up their pressure on the new giant unless it makes a drastic departure from Monsanto's past.

- Science wrangle -

Groundskeeper Johnson, diagnosed in 2014 with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma -- a cancer that affects white blood cells -- says he repeatedly used a professional form of Roundup while working at a school in Benicia, California.

His lawsuit built on 2015 findings by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, part of the UN World Health Organization, which classified Roundup's main ingredient glyphosate as a probable carcinogen, causing the state of California to follow suit.

Nevertheless, "on the basis of scientific conclusions, the views of worldwide regulatory authorities and the decades-long practical experience with glyphosate use, Bayer is convinced that glyphosate is safe and does not cause cancer," the company said in a statement Saturday.

Much of the value for Bayer in the Monsanto deal comes from the US firm's portfolio of genetically modified seeds, many of which are designed to resist pesticides like glyphosate.

Executives insist such products and methods are needed to feed a growing world population.

But glyphosate has long been in the sights of environmentalists, with Brussels last year renewing its license for use in the European Union for just five years rather than the usual 15 after intense lobbying.

Some EU nations including Germany and France have vowed to limit glyphosate use or ban it altogether despite the decision.

- War chest -

Bayer is no stranger to lawsuits, in 2012 paying out almost $2.0 billion to around 10,000 women in settlements over its Yasminelle contraceptive pill, which increased the risk of blood clots.

It also currently faces thousands of cases from patients claiming side effects from taking its anticoagulant drug Xarelto or using contraceptive devices Essure and Mirena.

Meanwhile Canadian honey makers have launched a class action seeking compensation over Bayer's production and sale of so-called neonicotinoid pesticides, which campaigners argue have caused mass die-offs among bees.

Bayer said in its first-quarter report this year that it had set aside some $277 million dollars for pending litigation.

Five things to know about Bayer and Monsanto
Frankfurt Am Main (AFP) Aug 13, 2018 - A cancer victim's surprise court victory over US pesticide maker Monsanto could open the floodgates to a slew of similar lawsuits, potentially leaving the firm's new German owner with a major case of buyer's remorse.

From the toxic legacy of Monsanto's Roundup weedkiller to fears about its use of genetically modified seeds, here's what you need to know about the $63-billion (55-billion-euro) merger between Bayer and Monsanto.

- Heroin -

Founded in Germany in 1863, Bayer is still best known for making aspirin. More infamously, it briefly sold heroin in the early 20th century, marketed as a cough cure and morphine substitute.

During World War II, Bayer was part of a consortium called IG Farben that made the Zyklon B pesticide used in Adolf Hitler's gas chambers.

Through a series of acquisitions over the years, Bayer has grown into a drug and chemicals behemoth and now employs some 100,000 people worldwide.

- Agent Orange -

Monsanto was established in St. Louis, Missouri in 1901, setting out to make saccharine.

By the 1940s, it was producing farm-oriented chemicals, including herbicide 2,4-D which, combined with another dangerous chemical was used to make the notorious Vietnam War-era defoliant Agent Orange.

In 1976, the company launched probably its best-known product, the weed killer Roundup.

In the 1980s, its scientists were the first to genetically modify a plant cell. Monsanto then started buying other seed companies and began field trials of GM seeds.

It eventually developed soybean, corn, cotton and other crops engineered to be tolerant of Roundup.

- Goodbye 'Monsatan' -

Dubbed "Monsatan" and "Mutanto", the US firm has for decades been in the crosshairs of environmentalists, especially in Europe, who believe that GM food could be unsafe to eat.

Campaigners also abhor Monsanto's production of glyphosate-based Roundup, which some scientists have linked to cancer although other studies dispute this.

Hoping to ditch Monsanto's poisonous reputation, Bayer has said it plans to drop the company's name from its products.

But Friends of the Earth, which has dubbed the merger a "marriage made in hell", said it would simply switch its protests to Bayer so long as it continues Monsanto's practices.

Another complaint about the latest consolidation in the industry is that it leaves the global seeds and pesticides market in the hands of just a few players -- potentially pushing up prices and limiting choices for farmers and consumers.

- Hello, lawsuits? -

A California jury last week ordered Monsanto to pay nearly $290 million in damages to a dying groundskeeper after finding that the company failed to warn him that using Roundup products might cause cancer.

Observers say the landmark win by Dewayne Johnson, who has non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, could pave the way for thousands of cases against Monsanto.

Bayer's share price plunged more than 10 percent in response.

Monsanto has vowed to appeal the ruling, while Bayer insisted that herbicides containing glyphosate are "safe".

Analyst Michael Leacock of MainFirst bank said the legal setback was "an unlucky outcome" for Bayer just two months after sealing the takeover.

"It is highly likely that investors will take a very dim view of the recent deal," he said.

- High price to pay -

In an industry preparing for a global population surge with many more mouths to feed, Bayer was keen to get its hands on Monsanto's market-leading line in GM crop seeds designed to resist strong pesticides like Roundup.

It was also lured by Monsanto's data analytics business Climate Corp, believing farmers will in future rely on digital monitoring of their crops.

But the takeover, one of the largest ever by a German firm, comes at a high cost.

As well as the eye-watering price tag, Bayer had to give up much of its seeds and agrichemical business to satisfy competition concerns.

Those divestitures have gone to none other than Bayer's homegrown rival BASF, the unexpected beneficiary of the mammoth deal.

And following the California court verdict, Bayer may now have to set aside huge sums to settle future Roundup claims.

"The total cost, in our view, could easily reach $10 billion" if Bayer were to settle with a still larger number of plaintiffs, said Leacock.

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