The U.S. Court for the Southern District of New York has dismissed a lawsuit brought against Creve Coeur-based seed company Monsanto Co. by the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association and myriad plaintiff growers and organizations, including Mansfield-based
Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Co.The case, filed March 29, 2011, alleged that farms growing Monsanto's genetically engineered seeds may cross-pollinate with crops in organic or pure-foods farms, effectively leaving organic growers open to litigation for patent infringement.
Monsanto is known for its genetically modified Roundup Ready herbicides and resistant seeds. According to Springfield Business Journal archives, Monsanto has 23 patents relating to its genetically altered products.
Farmers not using the genetically altered seeds have contested that to preserve the integrity of their heirloom seeds - which are not altered and have a lineage of at least 50 years - they must perform testing. In an
April 2011 Springfield Business Journal article, Baker Creek owner Jere Gettle said sending his corn varieties out of state for testing costs up to $3,000 per year.
The court ruling from U.S. District Judge Naomi Buchwald found that there is no substantial controversy warranting a declaratory judgment since Monsanto has not accused the plaintiffs of infringement or asserted the right to royalties from the plaintiffs, or taken any action to imply such claims.
According to the April 2011 SBJ story, Monsanto filed 144 patent infringement lawsuits between January 1997 and April 2010. Only nine of those went through a full trial, and Monsanto was victorious in every case. Growers who use Monsanto seeds are not authorized to harvest and plant the second-generation seed produced from the original planting or to sell the second-generation seeds.
"(Monsanto's) actions subsequent to the filing of the complaint cannot reasonably be construed as threatening and, regardless, are simply the product of plaintiffs’ transparent effort to create a controversy where none exists," the ruling reads. "Even were there credible threats of suit from defendants, there is no evidence that plaintiffs are infringing defendants’ patents, nor have plaintiffs suggested when, if ever, such infringement will occur."
In a news release, Monsanto reaffirmed a company policy not to exercise its patent rights where trace amounts of its seeds are found in farmer's fields by inadvertent means.
"This decision is a win for all farmers as it underscores that agricultural practices such as ag biotechnology, organic and conventional systems do and will continue to effectively coexist in the agricultural marketplace," said David Snively, Monsanto's executive vice president, secretary and general counsel, in the release.
Many farmers prior to the suit claimed litigation was brought against them when accidental cross-contamination occurred, according to a news release from the Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association
“While I have great respect for Judge Buchwald, her decision to deny farmers the right to seek legal protection from one of the world’s foremost patent bullies is gravely disappointing," the plaintiffs' lead attorney Daniel Ravicher said in the release. "Her belief that farmers are acting unreasonable when they stop growing certain crops to avoid being sued by Monsanto for patent infringement should their crops become contaminated maligns the intelligence and integrity of those farmers."
Shares of publicly traded Monsanto (NYSE: MON) were trading at $79.40 as of 10:20 a.m., compared to a 52-week range of $58.89 to $83.94
