The farmers complain about the seeds.
(Photo: IMAGO/CHROMORANGE)
Bayer has been ordered by the Supreme Court in Brazil to pay $252 million in royalties to soybean farmers there. Bayer said in a statement that they would comply with the verdict and decide on the next steps.
The judgment of the chief judge on February 13 refers to a technology that is commercially available under the name Intacta RR2 Pro and was developed by the US seed company Monsanto. Monsanto was acquired by German company Bayer in 2018. According to the farmer lobby Aprosoja, Bayer now has to pay $252 million into an escrow account to repay the license fees paid by farmers since 2018.
Soybean farmers in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso had accused Monsanto of irregularities in genetically modified soybean seeds of the Intacta RR2 Pro variety and had applied to the court for the patent to be revoked. Monsanto had already come under criticism in the South American country for its predecessor Roundup Ready. The soy farmers’ association Aprosoja accused the company of charging fees for patents that had expired years ago. According to Aprosoja, a large part of the soy cultivation area in Mato Grosso is based on Intacta RR2 PRO technology.
The judgment is the latest chapter in a protracted dispute between the crop protection company and Brazilian farmers, who have already taken legal action against the company on several occasions.
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