JPML Centralizes 177 Syngenta GMO Corn Lawsuits in Kansas

On Dec. 11, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) agreed to consolidate multiple GMO corn lawsuits and class action lawsuits filed by various corn farmers against Syngenta Co., alleging the corn supplier mixed its U.S. corn crop with genetically modified seed. These Syngenta cases will be centralized in Kansas because of its relatively easy accessibility for the parties involved.

According to the ruling by the JPML, “As with past litigation involving allegedly improper dissemination of genetically modified crops, centralization will eliminate duplicative discovery; avoid inconsistent pretrial rulings, particularly on class certification; and conserve the resources of the parties, their counsel and the judiciary.” U.S. District Judge John W. Lungstrum will preside over the 177 centralized Syngenta GMO corn lawsuits in a Kansas federal court.

About 177 GMO corn class action lawsuits and civil lawsuits were consolidated by the JPML, all of which similarly allege that Syngenta commercialized corn seed with “MIR162,” a genetically modified trait that increases a plant’s insect resistance, before said trait was approved by the Chinese government for imported grains. Although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved this GMO corn trait in 2010, the Chinese government has not yet approved MIR162.

A year after U.S. approval, Syngenta allegedly commercialized the GMO corn under the Viptera brand-name. According to one of the lawsuits consolidated in this GMO corn MDL, Syngenta knowingly misled U.S. farmers to believe that Chinese government was on the verge of approving the GMO trait. According to a Syngenta lawsuit filed by Stracener Farmin Co., as a result of this alleged misrepresentation, the U.S. corn market lost between $1 billion and $3 billion after the containers and cargo ships loaded with U.S. corn were rejected and seized by the Chinese government.

Volnek Farms Inc. and Hadden Farms Inc. filed similar GMO corn class action lawsuits against Syngenta claiming the company offered U.S. farmers a “side-by-side program,” meaning these farmers were allegedly  persuaded by Syngenta to plant regular corn seed and the Viptera GMO corn seed next to one another. By doing this, Volnek and Hadden farmers had a high risk of cross-contaminating the GMO and non-GMO corn, which also increased the likelihood that Chinese regulators would reject their produce.

According to Hadden Farm’s Syngenta class action lawsuit, it has been estimated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that about 5 million tons of U.S. corn was bought by China during 2012 and 2013. Although China has generally been the third largest international buyer of U.S. corn, the Chinese corn import market has fallen by 85 percent since 2012/2013.

The plaintiffs of these GMO corn lawsuits and GMO corn class action lawsuits consolidated in this Syngenta MDL is a diverse group of corn farmers, exporters, brokers, resellers, grain silos, and various other individuals and entities involved in the U.S. production of corn who have all been allegedly affected by the Syngenta misrepresentation of their GMO corn product.

Stracener Farming Co., David Stracener and Larry Petit are represented by Clark W. Mason of Clark Mason Attorneys LLP, Paul Byrd of Paul Byrd Law Firm PLLC, Jerry Kelly of Kelly Law Firm PC, James J. Thompson Jr. of the Law Office of James J. Thompson Jr. and Nolan Awbrey of Riley Jackson Attorneys PC. Volnek is represented by Paul D. Lundberg. Hadden is represented by Adam J. Levitt of Grant & Eisenhofer PA.

The Syngenta GMO Corn Multidistrict Litigation is In Re: Syngenta AG MIR162 Corn Litigation, MDL No. 2591, in the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation.