U.S. farmers in a class action lawsuit are seeking approval of a settlement agreement with Syngenta.
Court records show the class action lawsuit is seeking court approval for a record $1.51 billion settlement with Syngenta. The lawsuit includes farmers, grain handlers and ethanol plants nationwide that sold corn after September 15, 2013.
Reuters reports that lawyers for the plaintiffs said they believed the deal to be the largest agricultural class action settlement in U.S. history.
The farmers’ class action lawsuit, which was certified in 2016, concerns Syngenta’s 2010 decision to sell Agrisure Viptera in the United States. The trait was unapproved for import by China at the time, and was found in shipments of U.S. grain to China, which the nation rejected. The lawsuit claims those rejections caused U.S. corn prices to plummet. China later approved the trait for import, and Syngenta denies any wrongdoing in the case.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.