In recent agricultural news, an ongoing Syngenta corn lawsuit has run into some problems during the bellwether trials.

The corn lawsuit alleges that the corn industry as a whole suffered dramatic financial damages after Syngenta released its Viptera corn strain prior to gaining approval from China.

Syngenta, a Swiss company, has recently raised concerns over the bellwether process – including the process by which cases were picked to be included in the corn lawsuit. It is possible that Syngenta intends to request that some of these cases be dismissed.

According to Syngenta’s lawyers, about 15 of the representatives picked to participate in the bellwether trials were actually filed the day of the selection. Syngenta also claims that these representatives were inappropriately filed in Kansas, and do not fit under the proper venue and personal jurisdiction of the court.

Some of the plaintiffs involved in the corn lawsuit have accused Syngenta of what is called “sandbagging,” or purposely trying to slow the process down. A defendant can do this by challenging the court process to stall for time.

Plaintiffs claim that Syngenta is actively trying to skew the bellwether trial results, selecting small farmers who suffered from fewer damages.

Syngenta’s GMO Viptera Strain

Syngenta, an agribusiness that produces seeds, has sold genetically modified (GMO) corn seed called Viptera (MIR162) to U.S. farmers since 2011. This GMO corn strain was created to protect the corn against harmful pests like corn borer and corn rootworm.

The Syngenta lawsuit claims that, while biotechnology such as that of Syngenta holds a great deal of promise for the corn industry and the country as a whole, it can also do “extraordinary harm if handled irresponsibly.”

In 2010, the U.S. Department of Agriculture authorized the introduction of Syngenta’s GMO Viptera strain into the U.S. corn market. While the strain was perfectly legal to use in the U.S. market, the lawsuits allege that it was not approved in China until October 2014.

In the meantime, China had cut off U.S. corn imports, allegedly to keep Syngenta’s Viptera strain out. This ban affected all levels of the corn industry. Even after the ban was lifted, according to these lawsuits and agricultural news, Chinese imports of U.S. corn have drastically decreased – by about 85 percent.

Syngenta Corn Market and Agricultural News

The Syngenta corn lawsuits claim that the company failed to be completely transparent about the approval status of MIR162 corn in China, and also understated the potential impact of China’s lack of approval on the U.S. corn industry.

Indeed, corn market news indicates that the growing number of Syngenta corn farmer lawsuits allege that Syngenta deliberately misled the public and the corn industry about China’s stance toward the MIR162 Viptera strain

If you or someone you know has been negatively affected by Syngenta’s Viptera strain or declining corn prices, you may be able to file an individual Syngenta corn lawsuit, or join a Syngenta class action lawsuit.