A U.S. judge has dismissed a lawsuit that accused agricultural giants Bayer, Corteva, Syngenta, and others of conspiring with wholesalers and retailers to fix seed and crop protection chemical prices, allegedly causing farmers to pay more. U.S. District Judge Sarah Pitlyk, based in St. Louis, ruled that the farmers and other plaintiffs did not provide sufficient evidence to prove the companies violated U.S. antitrust laws. The plaintiffs claimed Bayer and others coordinated to block electronic platforms for crop inputs, hindering cost comparisons for essential agricultural products. However, Pitlyk stated that the plaintiffs’ claims were too vague and did not counter the companies’ defense that their actions were for legitimate business purposes. Bayer, Corteva, Syngenta, and BASF welcomed the decision, with Bayer stating the crop input market is “competitive, fair, and diverse,” and Corteva committing to continue competing vigorously. The defendants denied any wrongdoing. The case consolidated lawsuits filed in 2021, centering on crop protection chemicals like fungicides, herbicides, and insecticides. Farmers alleged that wholesalers pressured manufacturers to avoid working with e-commerce platforms that could improve price transparency, but the defendants argued there was no evidence of a conspiracy and that their actions aligned with their own business interests. Lawyers for the plaintiffs declined to comment.
