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Syngenta COO says lawsuits won’t affect deal

Syngenta’s chief operating officer says the proposed sale of the company to a state-owned Chinese company won’t affect the farmer lawsuits filed against the company over its MIR 162 corn.  Syngenta’s Chief Operating Officer Davor Pisk told reporters there won’t be any impact, “These cases are coming through – coming to trial – going through the normal process. And, they will be based upon the facts as they existed at the time and upon judgements around points of law.”

China rejected large shipments of the corn trait several years ago because it had not approved the GMO trait and farmers affected have sued the Swiss company. Davor says he hopes that if the sale does go through with ChemChina, that Syngenta will be able to help educate the Chinese about GMOs, “And I also hope we can be effective at getting our point of view across and influencing as well as over the long. So I think there are opportunities there, certainly, but I don’t think they are going to be necessarily quick ones.”

The National Farmers Union, Food & Water Watch, and others criticized the proposed sale saying it would accelerate consolidation in the market, give too much power to China and, ultimately, harm farmers. Syngenta says it will continue to operate as a stand-alone company if the deal goes through. It’s board of directors is recommending shareholders approve it.

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