Syngenta faces lawsuits over genetically modified corn

Syngenta is facing a wave of potentially costly lawsuits filed by disgruntled U.S. exporters and farmers who claim they racked up major losses because the company’s genetically modified Agrisure Viptera corn can’t be exported to China.

Switzerland-based Syngenta, one of the world’s largest purveyor of seeds, contends the lawsuits are without merit. The company’s global headquarters for its biotechnology research efforts are in Research Triangle Park, and its insect-resistant Viptera corn was discovered here.

Cargill filed the first such suit against Syngenta last month, contending it suffered more than $90 million in damages because its corn shipments have been rejected by Chinese authorities since November.

China hasn’t approved Syngenta’s Viptera corn and has rejected shipments upon detecting “even a trace amount” of it, according to Cargill’s lawsuit. Such “contamination” is inevitable, the lawsuit states, given the prevalence of corn grown from Viptera seed, cross-pollination of corn between farms and the commingling of corn from different farms when transported. “According to one study, the loss of the Chinese market for U.S. grown corn has already cost the U.S. grain industry up to $2.9 billion in damages,” the Cargill lawsuit states.

Since Cargill filed its complaint, more than a dozen suits with similar claims, many of them seeking class action status, have been filed by farmers, said James Pizzirusso of Hausfeld, a Washington law firm that is coordinating lawsuits filed in several states. At least one other exporter, Trans Coastal Supply, also has sued Syngenta.

The lawsuits also contend that domestic corn prices have fallen because of the loss of the Chinese market, which previously was the No. 3 export market for U.S. corn. Syngenta promoted the sale of Viptera seed to farmers “to line its own pockets at the expense of farmers who it knew would be impacted by China’s rejection of this GMO (genetically modified) trait,” Pizzirusso said.

Syngenta generated $14.7 billion in worldwide sales last year, including $3.2 billion in seed sales. It also produces crop protection products such as herbicides and insecticides. Syngenta invested about $200 million to develop Viptera corn, according to one lawsuit.

Syngenta said it was limited in what it could say about pending litigation, but issued a statement stating that the lawsuits have no merit and that the company “strongly upholds the right of growers to have access to approved new technologies that can increase both their productivity and their profitability.”

The company also noted that Viptera was approved for cultivation by U.S. regulators in 2010 and that it was commercialized “in full compliance with regulatory and legal requirements.”

Are you a corn farmer who has been impacted by the rejection of Syngenta’s Agrisure Viptera™ MIR 162 corn or Duracade™ and DDGS shipments to China? Have depressed corn and DDGS prices hurt your bottom line? If so, you may have legal rights to hold Syngenta responsible for depressing the market prices for corn and DDGS by marketing the generically-modified corn seed without having approval for import into China.

Farmers who did not plant Syngenta’s Agrisure Duracade™ or Viptera™ MIR 162 corn but who suffered financial injury due to depressed market prices caused by the rejection of MIR 162 corn shipments by China may have the ability to hold the bio-tech company accountable for those losses.

Attorneys at Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. are currently investigating the legal rights of farmers  who had the value of their corn and DDGS hurt by Syngenta’s actions.

To learn more about how corn farmers may be able to hold Syngenta accountable for depressing the U.S. corn and DDGS markets, contact us today for a free consultation by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Energy drinks may cause seizures, heart problems in young kids

NBC Nightly News reported, “We’re back now with a new warning about the popular energy drinks and the potential danger they present when they get into the hands of young children.” NBC News medical contributor Natalie Azar, MD, explained, “Researchers looked at records from 55 poison control centers over a three-year period and found more than 5,000 cases of energy drink exposure,” nearly all of which were unintentional. Additionally, more “than 40 percent involved children under the age of six.”

Bloomberg News reports that some of the children who drank energy drinks ended up “suffering seizures and heart problems.” Individuals “of all ages with underlying health conditions should be vigilant about the heavily caffeinated beverages...said” Steven Lipshultz, MD, chairman of pediatrics at Wayne State University in Detroit, MI. The study data were presented over the weekend at the American Heart Association conference.

HealthDay reports, “Some energy drinks have up to 400 milligrams (mg) of caffeine per serving, Lipshultz said, compared to about 100 mg or 150 mg in” the average cup of coffee.

If you have experienced complications with any form of energy drinks, contact Chhabra & Gibbs by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Healthcare firm didn’t act on hip implant failures

Bloomberg News reports Johnson & Johnson has been accused of putting profits before safety by ignoring reports that its metal-on-metal version of its Pinnacle hip implants “failed at alarming rates,” according to a lawyer’s comments in closing arguments today in Dallas Federal court. The article notes that J&J’s DePuy unit ignored the implants “had design flaws that prompted them to break down and then misled doctors about the implants’ failure rates to protect sales,” citing Mark Lanier, an attorney “for a Montana woman who sued after complications forced her to have the device removed.” The Pinnacle cases “have been consolidated” before US District Judge Ed Kinkeade “for pretrial information exchanges.”

If you have experienced complications with any type of hip implants, contact Chhabra & Gibbs by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Tainted supplements continue to be sold after recalls

News that a study found companies were continuing to offer tainted dietary supplements despite being recalled was covered by several major newspapers. The study revealed gaps in FDA enforcement and urged stronger measures to tackle the problem, some news outlets note. USA Today , citing research unveiled Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association, notes that researchers “identified 27 supplements” still being sold “online in the summer of 2013 that were among 274 recalled during 2009-2012.” The article notes “chemicals similar to the erectile dysfunction drug Viagra (sildenafil citrate) or the diet drug Meridia (sibutramine hydrochloride monohydrate)” were found in nearly 67% of the supplements being offered. Meridia was pulled over heart attack and stroke concerns. For example, Gaspari Nutrition was continuing to offer Novedex XT, a bodybuilding supplement, which was recalled in 2010.

Providing details of the study, the New York Times reports in its “Well” blog that most of the supplements “were marketed for weight loss, exercise and sexual enhancement, and they were sold across the country at convenience stores, in health food shops and over the Internet.” Among other chemicals, the piece notes, the supplements were found to contain antidepressant Prozac (fluoxetine), while several of the weight-loss products contained Sibutramine, “an amphetamine-like drug that was removed from the market” in the US, Asia and Europe “after a clinical trial showed it increased the risk of heart attacks and strokes.” FDA spokeswoman Jennifer Dooren is quoted in the piece.

Examining the potential loopholes that allow such tainted supplements to be sold, the Los Angeles Times points out that “unlike drugs, dietary supplements don’t have to be proved safe before being sold, and manufacturers can make general claims about health benefits.” The paper notes that with “limited powers to regulate nutritional supplements, the FDA in recent years has stepped up its recalls of nutritional supplements that are adulterated with prescription medications.” The article notes that in the three years starting January 2009, “the agency demanded that 274 such supplements be withdrawn from the market until the prescription drugs they illegally contained was removed.”

Study’s lead author Dr. Pieter Cohen, an internist and researcher at Cambridge Health Alliance, blamed both the manufacturers who put “profit ahead of consumer health” as well as “lax oversight” by the FDA for the “problem,” according to the AP.  “There should be significant legal and financial consequences for manufacturers who the FDA finds to be continuing to sell these spiked supplements,” Cohen said.

In response to the study, a trade association representing the dietary supplement industry, the Council for Responsible Nutrition, “said in a statement that the research finding suggests the FDA’s enforcement system works,” according to the Boston Globe. The group notes, according to the paper, “given that only 18 out of 273 recalled products still had active drugs in their ingredients, ‘the FDA’s recall efforts had a more than 93 percent success rate.’”

If you have experienced complications with any type of supplement medicine, contact Chhabra & Gibbs by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005

Study spotlights medication errors among children

Reports are showing  that every eight minutes, a child below 6 years of age experienced a medication error between 2002 and 2012, citing an analysis of calls to poison control hotlines that was unveiled in the journal Pediatrics. While most previous studies focused on medication errors in hospital and clinics, this study focused on errors outside of the doctor’s office or hospital.

      

Highlighting the significance of the study, other  reports show that although “the majority of the incidents were not life-threatening, medication errors nonetheless represent a major public health concern” in the US, “affecting more than 200,000 children annually – roughly 30 percent of whom are 6 or younger.” Still, the report notes, “starting in the mid-2000s, errors involving cough and cold medications as well as asthma treatments declined significantly.”

If you have experienced complications with any type of medications for your child, contact Chhabra & Gibbs by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Lawyer tells jurors in hip implants case company ignored problems

Bloomberg News provides an update on the legal case related to Johnson & Johnson’s Pinnacle hip implants, noting a lawyer told jurors that the company’s “bid to convince doctors the metal-on-metal version of its Pinnacle hip implants were safe amounted to ‘marketing run amok.’” Mark Lanier, a lawyer for a Montana woman who filed the lawsuit after complications, noted J&J’s DePuy “unit ignored signs the Pinnacle hips suffered from design flaws and assured doctors the metal devices worked ‘99.9 percent of the time.’” The lawsuit claims the metal hips by J&J, “leeched cobalt and chromium material into her bloodstream, causing an infection that required the devices to be surgically removed.”

If you have experienced complications with any type of hip implants, contact Chhabra & Gibbs by going to our website at http://www.cglawms.com  or calling 601-948-8005.

Common Questions in Social Security Part Three

Is it important to receive medical treatment for the conditions which cause me to be unable to work?

YES.  It is extremely important to receive medical treatment for those conditions which cause you to be disabled.  The social security administration and the judges rely on this information to make a determination about your disability.

What should I do if I cannot afford medical treatment for my conditions that cause me to be disabled?

You should contact my office at the number below in order to receive a list of low cost or free medical clinics around the state that you can go to for treatment.

Teresa Harvey

CG Law Group, P. A.

CG Law Group, P. A., an affiliated firm of Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. that was formed by the founding members of Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. to meet the growing needs of the firm’s clients without compromising the attorney’s abilities to focus on a particular area of law.  Chhabra & Gibbs, P.A. is able to give top rate competent service to people who have been injured, while the affiliated CG Law Group, P.A. is able to meet the other legal needs of injured people like estate and chancery work, social security disability, and discrimination cases.  Together, we strive to assure that our client’s rights are upheld and that their best interests are served. Contact Chhabra & Gibbs or CG Law Group today by going to www.cglawms.com or by calling this number: 601-948-8005.