Sample v. Monsanto Company
A federal judge denied class certification in an antitrust case in which Syngenta Seeds, Inc. and Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. were accused of conspiring to fix the price of genetically modified corn and soybean seeds. Analysis Group was retained by counsel for Syngenta and Pioneer to evaluate whether common evidence could be used to determine the extent of any injury suffered by farmers as a result of the alleged conspiracy.
Analysis Group Managing Principal Steve Herscovici and Vice President Alan White supported our academic affiliate, Catherine Morrison Paul, Professor of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of California, Davis, in analyzing approximately 40 million transactions from Syngenta and Pioneer and third-party survey data covering farmers' purchasing patterns.
Professor Paul's analysis found that premiums for genetically modified seeds varied by region, purchase size, variety of seed, and customer. The findings also showed that many farmers paid no premium, therefore suffering no harm. Based on these findings, Professor Paul concluded that individual impact could not be established from class-wide evidence.
In denying class certification, the judge stated, “I cannot…conclude class-wide impact here because the evidence submitted during the class certification hearing demonstrates that such a presumption would be improper.”