Agribusiness behemoth Cargill sued Syngenta, the seed and chemical company in state court in Louisiana, blaming it for sales lost to China, said the St Paul Pioneer Press. Cargill says U.S. corn exports to China were effectively halted because Syngenta sold seed for a genetically engineered corn variety, known as MIR162 and Viptera, that is not approved for sale in China. In a statement, Cargill said Syngenta Seeds “put the ability of U.S. agriculture to serve global markets at risk, costing both Cargill and the entire U.S. agricultural industry significant damages.”
Syngenta says it acted in compliance with U.S. law and obtained approval for MIR1652 from major importers, among them Canada, Brazil, Japan, Mexico and the European Union, said the Pioneer Press. MIR162 corn was engineered to resist above-ground pests such as corn earworm, it said, and Syngenta plans to sell seed with a trait to resist corn borer. The lawsuit says China has not approved that strain.