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Apr. 3, 2023 By Jason Jenkins, DTN JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (DTN) -- Six farmers from southeast Missouri find themselves at odds with Bayer CropScience after allegedly saving and subsequently planting soybean seed that contained the company's Roundup Ready 2 Xtend technology. Bayer also alleges that four of the six growers illegally applied dicamba formulations not approved for over-the-top (OTT) use on Xtend soybeans and did so after the June 30 cutoff date for OTT dicamba application set by EPA and the state of Missouri. In complaints filed in late January with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri in St. Louis, Bayer claimed the Bootheel farmers' alleged actions infringe upon its patents and breach the terms of contracts and technology stewardship agreements (TSAs) the farmers signed. The company seeks damages and a permanent injunction against the farmers to prevent future infringements on patented technologies. In response to DTN's request for comment on the lawsuits, a Bayer spokesperson wrote that "deciding to pursue litigation against growers is not easy for us. We exist to serve and support growers. The vast majority of growers abide by the law and honor their contractual agreements. In these cases, there was clear evidence of irresponsible and illegal use. "Illegal use threatens law-abiding growers' access," the spokesperson wrote. "These lawsuits are about ensuring proper use of the technologies and protecting grower access to the technologies." The farmers named in the lawsuits include Caleb Duffy, Greg Duffy, Michael J. Hodel and Brian G. Irions, all of Hayti, Missouri; Robert O. Pierce Jr. of Caruthersville, Missouri; and Danny Glass of Wardell, Missouri. All grew soybeans in Pemiscot County. The complaints of illegal application of unapproved dicamba formulations after the OTT dicamba cutoff date were lodged against the four farmers from Hayti only. In February, all six farmers filed a separate answer to Bayer's complaint in which they denied all allegations and demanded a jury trial. Wendell L. Hoskins II, an attorney from Caruthersville, Missouri, represents the farmers. DTN reached out to Hoskins by phone and email seeking comment on behalf of his clients but received no return call or reply. To continue reading report, Click Here Tweet |
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