Abstract
In 2013, China rejected shipments of U.S. corn imports due to the presence of an unapproved transgenic trait, creating an international trade disruption that sent ripples throughout the U.S. agriculture industry and grain markets. Syngenta, the seed company that began selling the trait to U.S. farmers prior to receiving China's import approval, largely shouldered the blame. U.S. farmers held Syngenta singularly liable and initiated a class action in an attempt to force Syngenta to pay for the drop in grain prices due to the disruption. The highly publicized domestic legal dispute left China's opportunistic actions largely unnoticed. The time has come to provide context to the circumstances surrounding China's actions in the 2013 trade fiasco. The United States can no longer ignore China's international trade violations, especially in light of the drastic consequences of the class action lawsuit. Holding Syngenta liable without addressing China's delinquent regulatory system will set a dangerous precedent for seed companies and threaten the future of agricultural innovation. This Comment argues that the United States should file a World Trade Organization complaint against China for its violations of international trade agreements to ensure that agricultural technology companies can make informed commercialization decisions and deliver U.S. farmers needed products without fear of future international trade disruptions.
Recommended Citation
Lucas A. Westerman,
Digging Up the Dirt: China's Exploitation of Transgenic Seed Approvals,
88
U. Colo. L. Rev.
765
(2017).
Available at:
https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/lawreview/vol88/iss3/6