Class-action StarLink bio-corn suit filed against Aventis
CHICAGO, Dec 6 (Reuters) - A class-action lawsuit has been filed
against the U.S. unit of European pharmaceutical giant Aventis SA for
damage caused in export markets by its unapproved gene-altered corn,
a lawyer said on Wednesday. The lawsuit blames StarLink corn, which
is not approved for human consumption but turned up in the U.S. food
chain, for depressing corn prices and causing losses to farmers. A
spokesperson for Aventis CropScience declined to comment on the
lawsuit.
"There has been a loss of export markets and depression in corn
prices," said attorney Elizabeth Cronise of the law firm Cohen,
Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll, which filed the lawsuit in U.S. District
Court in East St. Louis, Ill. last Friday. "It would be safe to say
that estimated damages have already been projected to be in the
millions of dollars due to loss of export markets," Cronise told
Reuters. She said the lawsuit seeks to represent farmers who did not
plant StarLink corn but have been adversely affected by the variety
that is not approved for food use because of concerns it might
trigger allergic reactions.
StarLink corn has been found commingled with vast amounts of other
corn varieties, causing farmers and grain handlers to suffer losses
because of discount prices fetched by such corn, which can only be
used as animal feed. The commingling has also resulted in widespread
testing of corn entering grain elevators, and being loaded into river
barges and export vessels at the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. Aventis has
been paying farmers a 25-cent premium for StarLink corn to ensure it
is kept out of the food chain. Traces of StarLink corn was also
detected in food products in Japan, leading to a decline in imports
from the top importer of U.S. corn. Japan does not allow the corn for
either food or feed use.
In the United States, more than 300 brands of foodstuff have been
recalled because of StarLink contamination. An independent panel of
U.S. scientists told the government on Tuesday that StarLink corn may
have triggered allergic reactions in 7 to 14 Americans. The panel
said in a report to the Environmental Protection Agency that more
study was needed to pinpoint whether StarLink corn was the cause of
the allergic reactions reported by those people, or if another
substance might be to blame. The panel also said it was "highly
doubtful" that much more StarLink corn would contaminate the U.S.
food supply, now that Aventis SA had withdrawn the corn from the
market.
The EPA said it would use the panel's assessment that there is a
"medium likelihood" that StarLink corn is a potential allergen to
"guide" the agency's decision on whether to temporarily allow the
corn in the human food supply. Aventis has asked the EPA to grant a
temporary four-year approval for use of StarLink in human food.
Copyright 1999 Reuters Limited.