In court rooms 300 miles apart along I-29 in the U.S. heartland, trials opened in two of the biggest controversies in American food and agriculture in recent years. In Kansas City, a class-action lawsuit says Syngenta should be held liable for corn shipments rejected by China early this decade. And in Elk Point, South Dakota, Beef Products Inc. (BPI) is seeking billions of dollars in damages from American Broadcasting Companies Inc. (ABC) for reporting that used the name “pink slime” to refer to BPI’s “lean finely textured beef.”
BPI says the reports defamed its product, which was often mixed into ground beef. It was made from chunks of beef and trimmings and exposed to bursts of ammonia to kill bacteria, says Reuters. The company says ABC used the words “pink slime” 137 times in its reporting in 2012. BPI’s revenues plummeted after the stories were aired. ABC said in a statement released ahead of the trial, “We believe in the principle that people deserve to know what’s in the food they eat and are confident that when all the facts are presented in court, ABC’s reporting will be fully vindicated.”
Corn farmers filed thousands of cases against Syngenta, blaming it for a plunge in market prices when China rejected cargoes of corn that included grain from its Viptera GMO variety. The corn was approved for sale by U.S. officials but China did not approve import of the corn until a couple of years later. “The farmers say that Syngenta was reckless both in allowing the trait to contaminate U.S. crops and selling a second GMO seed that also hadn’t been approved by China,” reports Bloomberg. Syngenta denies misleading farmers and says it is not to blame for a drop in corn prices.
“In a twist,” said Bloomberg, the case comes to trial as state-owned ChemChina is finalizing its acquisition of Syngenta. “A win for the farmers over Syngenta’s sales of the seeds would circle back to the Chinese government that rejected the grain.”