Missouri rice growers v Bayer CropScience
Lawsuit Filed on Behalf of Missouri Rice Farmers
A class action lawsuit was filed Wednesday on behalf of Missouri rice growers whose crop values have plummeted due to the contamination of their commercial rice supply with a genetically engineered rice which has not been approved for human consumption by the United States Department of Agriculture. The plaintiffs are farmers Billy and Sally Neel and Gregory Duff, and named as a defendant in the lawsuit is Bayer CropScience, the company which developed, manufactured and test-marketed a genetically altered rice, known as LLRICE 601. The altered rice contains a protein producing gene which makes the plant resistant to the herbicide Liberty.
Three other lawsuits have been filed in Arkansas containing similar allegations, however, attorneys' for the farmers represented in the Missouri lawsuit said in a news release there is a good reason for Arkansas farmers to participate in the lawsuit filed in Missouri than joining one of the Arkansas cases.
Missouri farmers are entitled to bring an action under the Missouri Crop Production Act which, among other things, allows for double damages for losses in crop production value. This act is unique to Missouri and cannot be pursued in lawsuits pending in other states.
The United States produces approximately $1.88 billion dollars worth of rice annually and some 40 to 50 percent of that is exported, according to figures from the USDA. Last year the European Union imported 198,000 tons of long- grain rice from the United States. Current exports to the EU are approximately 20,000 tons of rice a month.
No genetically engineered rice may be legally imported into the EU. As a result, any contamination of the U.S. long-grain rice supply is financially devastating to US growers and exporters, claims the lawyer handling the case.
The federal lawsuits represent rice growers in Arkansas, California, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Texas.
The government announced Aug. 18 that the genetically engineered rice had been found in U.S. rice long-grain rice supplies. Federal officials have said the genetically engineered rice poses no health or food safety risks.
The lawsuit seeks to represent rice farmers in the Missouri/Arkansas area whose rice was contaminated with genetically engineered rice.
