A class action lawsuit was filed against Syngenta for introducing a genetically engineered trait into the corn market that caused harm to the economic well-being of American farmers and other industry participants.

The Syngenta class action lawsuit alleges that Syngenta, a biotechnology company, irresponsibly and prematurely introduced a genetic trait into the market before the genetic trait had been approved by the leading commercial export markets.

According to the class action lawsuit, biotechnology has the ability to benefit the masses but also wields the ability to cause immense harm. Premature commercialization of new products is one way biotechnology companies can cause huge trade disruptions and enormous economic harm to farmers.

The genetic trait at issue in the Syngenta lawsuit is known as MIR162. In 2010, the gene was deregulated by the Department of Agriculture, but at that time was not approved by China, one of the largest export markets for U.S. corn farmers.

China’s regulatory approval for genetically engineered traits takes approximately two to three years. The lawsuit alleges that industry leaders warned Syngenta not to release the MIR162 trait until it had received the necessary regulatory approvals and at the time Syngenta agreed to hold back the trait’s release.

According to the Syngenta lawsuit, during this time Syngenta was also racing against the expiration date for the genetic trait’s patent. Each year that Syngenta waited to introduce the new gene onto the market, the company was losing profit.

U.S. farmers were hurt, the Syngenta class action lawsuit says, because Syngenta chose to release the MIR162 gene to the market prior to China’s regulatory approval. The commercialized product is called Agrisure Viptera.

In November 2013, U.S. corn exports to China were discovered to be contaminated with MIR162, which had still not received approval by China. When MIR162 was discovered, China began rejecting U.S. corn shipments.

The Syngenta corn class action lawsuit lawsuit states that after the shipments were rejected by China the U.S. corn industry warned Syngenta of the economic harm Agrisure Viptera was causing the market. According to the class action lawsuit, despite this severe warning Syngenta continued selling Agrisure Viptera and proceeded to launch a new variation of MIR162 for the upcoming crop year.

The Syngenta class action lawsuit further claims that due to corporate greed Syngenta attempted to mislead and minimize the effect of its conduct on the market. China eventually approved MIR162 in December 2014, but the Syngenta lawsuit says the damage had already been done.

Overview of Syngenta Lawsuits

Individual Syngenta lawsuits and Syngenta class action lawsuits have been filed across the country in both state and federal court. Product liability attorneys are looking for potential plaintiffs to bring new Syngenta lawsuits against the biotechnology company.

Potential plaintiffs include corn farmers, corn storage companies, corn brokers, and corn exporters. Awards and settlements from these lawsuits will help compensate victims for the damages they’ve suffered.

The Syngenta Class Action Lawsuit is Case No. 14-md-25910JWL-JPO, in the U.S. District Court for the district of Kansas.