Trump invokes Defense Production Act for glyphosate and phosphorus

The Defense Production Act is a Korean War-era law signed by President Truman in 1950 that gives the president power to direct private companies to prioritize government contracts for national defense. Congress has expanded its definition of national defense over the decades to include energy, public health, and now food security. Trump's order is the first time a president has used the DPA to mandate herbicide production.

Bayer's Monsanto subsidiary operates the only domestic supply chain for both elemental phosphorus and glyphosate. The company mines phosphorus in Soda Springs, 🥔Idaho, formulates glyphosate in Muscatine, 🌽Iowa, and finishes production in Luling, 🎺Louisiana. No other U.S. company produces either chemical at scale, giving Bayer an effective monopoly on domestic supply.

Section 707 of the Defense Production Act shields companies from liability for actions taken in compliance with DPA orders. This means Bayer could argue that producing glyphosate under a federal mandate protects it from certain legal claims. The timing matters: Bayer announced a $7.25 billion proposed settlement of Roundup cancer lawsuits just one day before Trump signed the order, on February 17, 2026.

Elemental phosphorus has genuine national security applications. It's used in military smoke screens, illumination and incendiary munitions, semiconductor manufacturing for radar and sensors, and lithium-ion batteries for defense systems. The Department of Interior designated it a scarce material, and the U.S. imports over 6 million kilograms annually, mostly from China.

The Make America Healthy Again coalition helped deliver Trump's 2024 victory, with health-conscious voters drawn by promises to restrict pesticides and processed food additives. The glyphosate order directly contradicts those promises. The Environmental Working Group called it 'a big middle finger to every MAHA mom,' and advocates said 'MAHA voters were promised health reform, not chemical entrenchment.'

RFK Jr. once won a landmark $289 million jury verdict against Monsanto as a trial lawyer, arguing Roundup caused a school groundskeeper's non-Hodgkin lymphoma. As Trump's HHS Secretary, Kennedy reversed course, defending the executive order by saying 'Donald Trump's executive order puts America first where it matters most -- our defense readiness and our food supply.' His shift from pesticide critic to pesticide defender happened gradually since his nomination last summer.

The U.S

Supreme Court is currently considering Durnell v

Monsanto, which could determine whether federal pesticide law preempts state failure-to-warn lawsuits If the Court sides with Bayer, it could effectively end most Roundup litigation nationwide Combined with the DPA liability shield, Bayer could gain dual legal protection -- federal preemption from the Court and compliance immunity from the executive order.

China dominates global production of both glyphosate and elemental phosphorus. Beijing has imposed export controls on critical minerals like gallium and germanium, and a Department of Defense study found Chinese supply chains touch components in 1,900 U.S. weapon systems. The executive order frames breaking this dependence as a defense priority, but critics argue the glyphosate portion is more about protecting one company than national security.