A federal court has granted Monsanto’s move to dismiss a complaint filed by a Missouri farmer alleging a conspiracy to monopolize a more-expensive seed.
U.S. District Judge Stephen Limbaugh Jr….stated the plaintiffs did not “adequately” show they were direct seed purchasers, according to a March 13 order. He cited Kloth v. Microsoft Corp. in which the Fourth Circuit Court ruled that even though consumers entered into a license agreement to purchase software, it does not make the consumer a “direct purchaser.”
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Plaintiffs Sam Branum, a Missouri farmer, and Wapsie Farms Partnership alleged Monsanto had “artificially increased demand” of its herbicide-resistant Xtend seeds to gain “monopolistic profits,” the ruling states….
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According to the court filing, Monsanto developed Xtend seeds, which contain a genetic trait that allows them to tolerate herbicide application such as Roundup and dicamba. Since the dicamba herbicide tends to “drift” to other crops and cause damage, Monsanto allegedly joined forces with the makers of dicamba, BASF Corp., to develop a “new dicamba” called XtendiMax that would be less prone to drift to other crops and cause damage like the original dicamba.
Read full, original article: Judge grants Mosanto’s motion to dismiss farmers’ suit over Xtend seeds
