Industry-Connected EPA Officials Met With Bayer Before Helping the Company With Its Priorities
Updated
A publicly released FOIA request shows that Trump administration officials arranged a meeting with Bayer executives in June 2025 to discuss legal issues, and the meeting memo states that Bayer will “provide a small thanks for updating the glyphosate web page and work on MAHA.” The scheduled meeting included Bayer CEO Bill Anderson, VP of Crop Science & Corporate Government Affairs Stephanie Lynn Murphy, and Federal Affairs Director Erick Lutt. The EPA officials include Ag Advisor Turner Bridgforth, Office of General Counsel (OGC) Sean Donahue, and Principal Deputy Assistant Administrator Nancy Beck.
All three EPA officials in the meeting had ties to the private agrochemical industry before joining the Trump administration. The meeting included discussions with the administration regarding Bayer’s litigation and labeling options for glyphosate, as well as its Supreme Court actions. Bayer also wanted an update on its Dicamba application, and the memo states the EPA could not legally move forward without considering public comments and obligations under the Endangered Species Act.
In 2026, President Trump signed an executive order declaring that domestic glyphosate production is a national security priority. The administration filed a brief supporting Bayer in its Supreme Court case, arguing that federal preemption overrides state “failure to warn” litigation. The Trump EPA also approved Dicamba for two years despite two federal court rulings in 2020 and 2024 that ruled the EPA’s previous approvals of Dicamba were unlawful.
Three significant actions were taken by the Trump administration to support Bayer and the agrichemical industry since the June meeting, which was held between Bayer and administration officials who have ties to the industry they are tasked with regulating.
Ag Advisor Bridgforth reached out to Donahue and Beck to ask them to review the meeting details so they could be prepared for the administration’s meeting with Bayer executives. Bridgforth worked as a government and industry affairs manager at Corteva Agriscience from 2022 until April 2025, when he took the role at the Trump EPA. Two months later, he was tasked with writing a memo and attending a meeting with Bayer’s CEO.
Donahue disclosed during his Senate confirmation hearing that his significant other is Trent Morse, who served as the deputy director of presidential personnel – a position that has “purview” over every political appointment. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse said Donahue “may be the most unfit nominee ever for any federal agency’s general counsel,” as his only experience was a year and a half working for a small Buffalo firm that fired him. Morse worked for Ballard Partners and Mercury before serving on the Trump/Vance transition team. Both firms are listed as lobbyist firms for Bayer. Donahue is one of the nine attorneys who signed the brief in support of Bayer’s Supreme Court case alongside three other attorneys with direct ties to Bayer.
The HighWire has previously reported about Beck as one of the Trump administration officials working in the EPA with direct ties to the chemical industry. Beck is the former director of the American Chemistry Council, of which Bayer is a member alongside ExxonMobil, BASF, and Dow, among others.
Bayer spends over $9 million annually to lobby state and federal governments. In 2020, the company created a $9.6 billion settlement fund to resolve 100,000+ pending cancer cases. Since then, there has been ongoing litigation and individual case settlements. The company has said it may have to withdraw Roundup from the market if it doesn’t receive some form of protection to prevent a cascade of lawsuits.
Earlier this month, a Missouri court gave preliminary approval for the company’s latest attempt to put an end to the continued litigation for claims that Roundup caused Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. The settlement includes $7.25 billion to resolve existing NHL and future claims. There is a 90-day period for potential class members to be notified of the opportunity to opt out or file an objection. Following this period, the court will decide whether to grant final approval of the settlement. Bayer previously said it retains the right to cancel the settlement if too many people opt out.
Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) advocates have spoken out against the Trump administration and the EPA for supporting the agrichemical industry and Bayer following the Supreme Court brief, executive order signing, and dicamba approval. The FOIA request release shows the company has been in contact with the administration despite the opposition from MAHA advocates.
Secretary Kennedy issued a statement of support following Trump’s executive order, but later said on the Joe Rogan Experience that it was not something he was particularly happy with. He explained that the country’s agricultural system depends on glyphosate, which accounts for 99% of it, and that he supports the rationale behind the president’s executive order. Secretary Kennedy also said he didn’t like the administration’s support of Bayer in the Supreme Court preemption case that could provide the company a form of liability immunity.
Secretary Kennedy also said pesticides are poisons that are designed to kill all life. He explained how glyphosate dependency in the American food system degrades soil and increases farmers’ costs. He also said the residue levels in the food prevent American farms from being able to export their products to other countries.
The MAHA Strategy Report calls for more targeted use of pesticides to protect soil quality and to provide farmers with information to improve pollinator management. The report doesn’t explicitly link glyphosate or pesticide use to pollinator health, but scientific research shows a connection between glyphosate use and declining pollinator populations.