Class-action lawsuits asking $1 billion in damages from seed company Syngenta were filed in federal court Iowa, Illinois and and Nebraska. The lawsuits say growers and processors lost sales because Syngenta’s MIR 162 genetically engineered corn is not approved for sale in China, which has rejected tens of thousands of tonnes of U.S. corn shipments on grounds they contain the Syngenta grain. Courthouse News quoted the suit filed in U.S. district court in Omaha as saying Syngenta “destroyed the export of U.S. corn to China and caused depressed prices for all domestic corn.”
The Syngenta variety, engineered to resist corn cutworm and earworm, is approved by U.S. regulators. The suits in Iowa and Nebraska ask for monetary damages and for a court order to block Syngenta from selling the variety.
On its Web site, Syngenta says it is is working with Chinese officials for approval of the GE variety.
Grain processor and exporter Cargill sued Syngenta on Sept 12 over the disruptions in corn exports. Cargill said Syngenta “has not practiced responsible stewardship” and cited a grain industry estimate of $2.9 billion in losses to farmers and exporters. At that time, Syngenta said it “strongly upholds the rights of growers to have access to approved new technologies.” It repeated the statement in response to the class-action suits, says DTN, which said cases also were filed in Missouri and Kansas.