Two corn farmers have filed a Syngenta class action lawsuit on behalf of themselves and other Ohio corn producers affected by the Syngenta corn controversy.
The two plaintiffs, Russell R. and Kenneth O., are suing the Swiss agricultural company Syngenta AG and its related companies, along with a long list of other agricultural industry members involved in the distribution and exportation of harvested U.S. corn.
Russell and Kenneth seek to represent a class consisting of all Ohio corn producers who did not deal in Viptera or Duracade corn but were nevertheless harmed by the Chinese rejection of U.S. corn that resulted from discovery of Viptera in shipments of U.S. corn.
Their claims raise issues that are by now very familiar to those who work in the U.S. corn market. Syngenta developed its Viptera and Duracade varieties of corn with a genetic trait known as MIR162 that would make it particularly resistant to certain pests. U.S. regulatory authorities approved Viptera corn in 2010, and Syngenta promptly began selling Viptera seeds on the U.S. market.
The plaintiffs say that at that point, Syngenta knew that Viptera seeds would soon be commingled throughout the entire U.S. corn supply, both by cross-pollination between plants and by mixing different varieties of corn during shipping.
Chinese Rejection of Syngenta Corn
In November 2013, some Viptera corn found its way into shipments of corn bound for China, before China had approved the MIR162 trait for import. When Chinese inspectors found Viptera among other U.S. corn, the Chinese government responded by rejecting shipments of U.S. corn.
Russell and Kenneth say that the Chinese response was a catastrophe for all those who work in the U.S. corn market, not just those who dealt directly with Viptera corn.
They say that in December 2013 alone, China rejected over 665,000 metric tons of U.S. corn. They say that because of the rejection of U.S. corn by Chinese officials, U.S. corn exports dropped about 85 percent since 2013.
The plaintiffs also cite an estimate by the National Grain and Feed Association that calculated the economic harm attributable to Syngenta’s actions as between $1 billion and $2.9 billion.
With some accounting for the affect of Duracade on the market, the association estimated the total ham to the grains sector for the 2014-2015 marketing year could be as high as $3.4 billion.
Even while China was rejecting U.S. corn outright due to traces of Vipera, Syngenta nevertheless introduced Duracade onto the market, which contained the same MIR162 trait that had yet to be approved by Chinese officials. Duracade also contained another trait known as Event 5307, which China had also yet to approve, according to the plaintiffs.
Interestingly, both Russell and Kenneth say that they never purchased or grew Viptera or Duracade corn themselves. They say that due to the effect of Viptera and Duracade’s presence in the entire corn market, members of the corn industry have been economically harmed by Syngenta’s actions whether or not they dealt directly with those varieties of corn.
Their Syngenta class action lawsuit seeks to represent all Ohio corn producers who were harmed financially without having actually dealt in Viptera or Duracade corn.
The Syngenta GMO Corn Class Action Lawsuit is Case No. 1:15-cv-00776-SJD in the Clinton County, Ohio Common Pleas Court.
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