syngenta
{{short description|Global provider of agricultural science and technology}}
{{for multi|the Scottish football club|Syngenta F.C.|the moth genus|Syngeneta}}
{{Use American English|date=November 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Syngenta Global AG
| logo = Syngenta-logo.png
| logo_size = 250px
| image = Syngenta Group, Rosentalstrasse, Basel, Switzerland.jpg
| image_caption = Headquarters, Basel, Switzerland
| type = Private
| foundation = {{start date and age|df=yes|2000|11|13}}
| industry = Agrobusiness, chemicals
| area_served = Worldwide
| location = Basel, Switzerland
| key_people = {{Unbulleted list|Jeff Rowe (CEO)|Hengde Qin (CFO)}}
| products = {{Unbulleted list|Crops (fungicides, herbicides, insecticides)|field and vegetable seeds|flowers|nutrients|digital services (maps, weather data)}}
| divisions = {{ublist|Syngenta Crop Protection|Syngenta Seeds}}
| revenue = {{decrease}} US$19.196 billion
| revenue_year = 2023
| net_income = {{decrease}} US$1.081 billion (EBITDA)
| net_income_year = 2023
| num_employees =
| num_employees_year =
| owner = Sinochem
| homepage = {{Official URL}}
| footnotes = [https://www.syngenta.com/sites/syngenta/files/bond-investor-information/financial-results/financial-report-2023.pdf Financial Report 2023]
}}
Syngenta Global AG is a global agricultural technology company headquartered in Basel, Switzerland.{{Cite news|author1=Aaron KirchfeldAndrew Marc Noel, Patrick Winters|title=Monsanto Said to Have Weighed $40 Billion Syngenta Deal|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-06-23/monsanto-said-to-have-weighed-40-billion-syngenta-deal|access-date=4 June 2015|work=Bloomberg News|date=24 June 2014}} It primarily covers crop protection and seeds for farmers. Syngenta is part of the Syngenta Group, entirely owned by Sinochem, a Chinese state-owned enterprise.{{cite web | url=https://cen.acs.org/business/mergers-&-acquisitions/Merger-Sinochem-ChemChina-long-rumored/98/i35 | title=Merger of Sinochem and ChemChina, long rumored, is confirmed }}
Syngenta was founded in 2000 by the merger of the agrichemical businesses of Novartis and AstraZeneca, and acquired by China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina) in 2017.{{Cite news|url=https://fortune.com/2021/07/01/china-acquisition-chemchina-syngenta/|website=Fortune|date=2021-07-01|access-date=2022-08-23|first1=Geoff|last1=Colvin|title=China is unloading its biggest-ever foreign acquisition }} In 2020, the Syngenta Group was formed, bringing together Syngenta Crop Protection and Syngenta Seeds, Adama, and the agricultural business of Sinochem, now called Syngenta Group China, under a single entity.{{Cite web|title=Syngenta: China formt den größten Agrochemie-Konzern der Welt|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/industrie/syngenta-china-formt-den-groessten-agrochemie-konzern-der-welt/25391650.html|access-date=2020-11-04|website=Handelsblatt|language=de}}
Syngenta's primary products include pesticides, selective herbicides, non-selective herbicides, fungicides, insecticides, as well as corn, soya, and biofuel. Syngenta brands include Actara (Thiamethoxam), Agrisure (corn with Viptera trait), Alto (Cyproconazole), Amistar (azoxystrobin), Avicta, Axial, Bicep II, Bravo, Callisto, Celest, Cruiser (TMX, Thiamethoxam), Dividend, Dual, Durivo, Elatus, Fusilade, Force, Golden Harvest, Gramoxone, Karate, Northrup-King (NK), Proclaim, Revus, Ridomil, Rogers, Score, Seguris, S&G, Tilt, Topik, Touchdown, Vertimec and Vibrance.
The company has been controversial, primarily due to its main business – selling toxic chemicals and the environmental impact of those chemicals – but also due to its investment in lobbying. In 2012, the company was nominated for the Public Eye Award, which denounces companies with questionable human rights practices.
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History
Based in Basel, Switzerland, Syngenta was formed on 13 November 2000 by the merger of Novartis Agribusiness and AstraZeneca Agrochemicals.Andrew Ross Sorkin for the New York Times. 3 December 1999 [https://www.nytimes.com/1999/12/03/business/international-business-astrazeneca-and-novartis-to-shed-agricultural-units.html AstraZeneca and Novartis To Shed Agricultural Units] Accessed 27 May 2013{{cite web |title=About our company |url=https://www.syngenta.com/en/company |website=Syngenta Global |publisher=Syngenta |access-date=21 November 2023}}
In 2004, Syngenta Seeds purchased Garst, the North American corn and soybean business of Advanta, as well as Golden Harvest Seeds.{{cite web |url=http://www.icis.com/Articles/2004/05/18/580890/syngenta+buys+advanta.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130725155958/http://www.icis.com/Articles/2004/05/18/580890/syngenta+buys+advanta.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=2013-07-25 |title=Syngenta buys Advanta-17/05/2004-ECN |publisher=Icis.com |date= |access-date=2014-02-04 }}{{cite web |url=http://www.seedtoday.com/info/ST_articles.html?type=ST.COM&ID=22887 |title=Syngenta to Acquire Golden Harvest |publisher=Seed Today |date= |access-date=2014-02-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131018042040/http://www.seedtoday.com/info/ST_articles.html?type=ST.COM&ID=22887 |archive-date=18 October 2013 |df=dmy-all }}
{{As of|2014}}, Syngenta's main competitors were Monsanto Company, BASF, Dow AgroSciences, Bayer CropScience and DuPont Pioneer.Agropages.com 25 Mar. 2014 [http://news.agropages.com/News/NewsDetail---11846.htm Top six agrochemical firms grew steady in 2013]
In 2014, Monsanto sought to acquire Syngenta for a reported $40 billion, but Syngenta rejected the offer.{{cite news|author1=Aaron KirchfeldAndrew Marc Noel, Patrick Winters|title=Monsanto Said to Have Weighed $40 Billion Syngenta Deal|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-06-23/monsanto-said-to-have-weighed-40-billion-syngenta-deal|accessdate=4 June 2015|work=Bloomberg News|date=24 June 2014}}{{cite web|url=http://seekingalpha.com/news/2505826-syngenta-rejects-monsantos-takeover-approach |title=Syngenta rejects Monsanto's takeover approach |author=Minkoff, Yoel |type=blog |website=Seeking Alpha |date=8 May 2015 |accessdate=10 May 2015 }} Since April 2015, Monsanto and Syngenta had been working with their investment banks Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs respectively on a deal. The U.S. Treasury tried to stop the deal for tax inversion.{{cite news|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/05/08/syngenta-ma-monsanto-idUKL5N0XY6C020150508|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630213004/http://uk.reuters.com/article/2015/05/08/syngenta-ma-monsanto-idUKL5N0XY6C020150508|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 June 2015|title=RPT-Monsanto and Syngenta hire U.S. banks to advise on possible takeover|work=Reuters|date=8 May 2015|accessdate=18 May 2015}} Syngenta's Board of Directors rejected an even better offer by Monsanto during August 2015, and Monsanto withdrew from the negotiations on 26 August.{{cite web|url=http://www.fin24.com/Companies/Agribusiness/Monsanto-drops-pursuit-of-Swiss-rival-Syngenta-20150827|title=Monsanto drops pursuit of Swiss rival Syngenta.|website=fin24.com|date=27 August 2015|accessdate=27 August 2015}}
In February 2016, ChemChina, a Chinese state-owned enterprise, offered to purchase Syngenta for $43 billion (480 Swiss francs per share), a deal which the company "unanimously recommended to shareholders".{{cite news|title=ChemChina offers to buy Syngenta for $43bn|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-35480393|accessdate=8 April 2017|work=BBC News|date=3 February 2016}} In April 2017, the Federal Trade Commission, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, and the European Commissioner for Competition approved of the acquisition.{{cite news|last1=Tsang|first1=Amie|title=Deal's Approval Buoys China in Its Quest for Food Security|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/business/syngenta-chemchina-takeover.html|accessdate=8 April 2017|work=The New York Times|date=6 April 2017|page=A1}} This was the largest takeover by a Chinese company to date, and it caused criticism.{{Cite news|title=Riesenübernahme: China bietet 43 Milliarden Dollar für Syngenta|language=de|work=FAZ.NET|url=https://www.faz.net/aktuell/wirtschaft/unternehmen/chemiekonzern-chemchina-will-schweizer-syngenta-uebernehmen-14049299.html|access-date=2020-11-04|issn=0174-4909}} To secure approval, ChemChina agreed to divest from pesticide production of paraquat, abamectin, and chlorothalonil.{{cite news|title=FTC Requires China National Chemical Corporation and Syngenta AG to Divest U.S. Assets as a Condition of Merger|url=https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2017/04/ftc-requires-china-national-chemical-corporation-syngenta-ag|accessdate=8 April 2017|agency=Federal Trade Commission|date=4 April 2017}}{{cite news|title=Mergers: Commission clears ChemChina acquisition of Syngenta, subject to conditions|url=http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-882_en.htm|accessdate=8 April 2017|agency=European Commission|date=5 April 2017}} The transaction closed on 26 June 2017.[https://www.dtnpf.com/agriculture/web/ag/news/article/2017/06/27/new-syngenta-owner-lays-expectations ChemChina Promises Growth.] DTN/The Progressive Farmer
In the following years, several acquisitions were made to expand the business. In November 2017, Syngenta agreed to purchase Nidera from Cofco International.{{Cite news|date=2017-11-06|title=China's Cofco International sells Nidera seeds business to Syngenta|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/china-cofco-syngenta-idUSL3N1NC2U2|access-date=2020-05-08}} In March 2018, Syngenta announced plans to acquire Strider, a Brazilian agtech company.{{Cite web|title=Syngenta acquires Brazilian agtech company|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2018/03/29/syngenta-acquires-brazilian-agtech-company.html|last=Seaman|first=Jessica|date=29 March 2018|website=Triad Business Journal|access-date=}} In July, Syngenta acquired Floranova, a flower and vegetable seeds breeder based in the UK.{{Cite web|title=Syngenta acquires U.K.-based seeds breeder Floranova|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2018/07/27/syngenta-acquires-u-k-based-seeds-breeder.html|last=Ayers|first=Rebecca|date=27 July 2018|website=Triad Business Journal|access-date=}} In September 2019, the company acquired all the assets of The Cropio Group, an agri-technology company.{{Cite web|title=Syngenta acquires agri-business software company|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/triad/news/2019/09/02/syngenta-acquires-agri-business-software-company.html|last=Whittington|first=Lloyd|date=2 September 2019|website=Triad Business Journal|access-date=2019-11-04}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.agriculture.com/syngenta-buys-agricultural-technology-firm-cropio|title=Syngenta Buys Agricultural Technology Firm Cropio|date=2019-09-02|website=Successful Farming|language=en|access-date=2020-02-25}}
In June 2020, ChemChina transferred its entire agricultural business to the Syngenta Group,{{Cite web|title="Syngenta Group" – Die Eigner aus China machen Syngenta chic für die Börse|url=https://www.handelszeitung.ch/unternehmen/syngenta-group-die-eigner-aus-china-machen-syngenta-chic-fur-die-borse|access-date=2020-11-04|website=Handelszeitung|language=de}} which now also includes Adama and the agricultural activities of Sinochem in addition to Syngenta.{{Cite news|title=Syngenta wird in Holding integriert|date=2020-01-06|language=de|newspaper=Basler Zeitung}}{{Cite web|last=Wirtschaft|first=Finanz und|title=Syngenta bündelt Agrargeschäfte|url=https://www.fuw.ch/article/syngenta-uebernimmt-agrargeschaeft-von-chemchina-und-sinochem/|access-date=2020-11-04|website=Finanz und Wirtschaft|date=6 January 2020 |language=de}} The Syngenta Group is a Chinese company with its management headquarters in Basel, Switzerland.{{Cite news|title=Syngenta-Hauptsitz sollin Basel bleiben|date=2020-01-30|language=de|newspaper=Tagesanzeiger}}
At the end of 2020, Syngenta Group announced the acquisition of Valagro, a manufacturer of biological crop protection products headquartered in Atessa, Italy.{{Cite web|first=Jordan|last=Strickler|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jordanstrickler/2020/10/07/syngenta-purchases-leading-biologicals-company-valagro/|title=Syngenta Purchases Leading Biologicals Company Valagro|website=Forbes|date=2020-10-07|access-date=2024-05-16}} The company continues to operate as an independent brand.
=Acquisition history (selection)=
{{Missing information|further acquisitions|date=November 2020}}
The following is an illustration of the company's mergers, acquisitions, spin-offs and historical predecessors:
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|1=Novartis Agribusiness
|2=Zeneca Agrochemicals
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|1=Garst Seed Company
{{small|(Acq 2004)}}
|2=Golden Harvest Seeds
{{small|(Acq 2004)}}
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|1=Synergene Seed & Technology, Inc{{cite web|url=http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/en-091112.aspx|title=Syngenta acquires U.S. lettuce seed companies|work=syngenta.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924112727/http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/en-091112.aspx|archive-date=24 September 2015|df=dmy-all}}
{{small|(Acq 2009)}}
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|1=Pybas Vegetable Seed Co., Inc
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|1=Pasteuria Bioscience, Inc{{cite web|url=http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/120919.aspx|title=Syngenta to acquire Pasteuria Bioscience|work=syngenta.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504054706/http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/pages/120919.aspx|archive-date=4 May 2015|df=dmy-all}}
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|1=MRI Seed Zambia Ltd{{cite web|url=http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/130703.aspx|title=Syngenta to acquire African corn seed business|work=syngenta.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329175714/http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/130703.aspx|archive-date=29 March 2015|df=dmy-all}}
{{small|(Acq 2013)}}
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|1=MRI Agro Ltd
{{small|(Acq 2013)}}
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|1=Società Produttori Sementi{{cite web|url=http://www4.syngenta.com/media/media-releases/yr-2014/07-04-2014|title=Syngenta acquires leading Italian durum wheat seed company|work=syngenta.com}}
{{small|(Acq 2014)}}
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|1=Lantmännen{{cite web|url=http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/140616.aspx|title=Syngenta to acquire Lantmännen's winter wheat and winter oilseed rape businesses in Germany and Poland|work=syngenta.com|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329170729/http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/en/news-center/news-releases/Pages/140616.aspx|archive-date=29 March 2015|df=dmy-all}}
{{small|(Winter wheat & oilseed rape operations, Acq 2014)}}
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Products and services
{{anchor|Agrisure Duracade|Agrisure Viptera|Duracade|Viptera}}
Syngenta has eight primary product lines which it develops, markets and sells worldwide;
Its five product lines for pesticides are selective herbicides, non-selective herbicides, fungicides, insecticides and seed care.
Three product lines for seed products include corn and soya, other field crops and vegetables.{{cite web|url=http://www.annualreport.syngenta.com|title=Annual Report 2013 |publisher=Syngenta.com |accessdate=2014-04-21}}{{page needed|date=June 2015}} In 2014, sales from crop protection products accounted for US $11.381 billion, i.e. 75% of total sales.{{cite web|url=http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/SiteCollectionDocuments/pdf/media-releases/en/20150204-en-full-year-results-2014.pdf|title=Full-Year Results 2014|publisher=Syngenta.com|access-date=2015-04-03|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316192604/http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/SiteCollectionDocuments/pdf/media-releases/en/20150204-en-full-year-results-2014.pdf|archive-date=16 March 2015|df=dmy-all}}{{page needed|date=June 2015}} Field crop seeds include both hybrid seeds and genetically engineered seeds, some of which enter the food chain and become part of genetically modified food. According to Syngenta, in the US their "proprietary triple stack corn seeds expanded to represent around 25 percent of units sold."[http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/SiteCollectionDocuments/pdf/presentations/investor/20100205-transcript.pdf. 2009 Full Year Results] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150630120030/http://www.syngenta.com/global/corporate/SiteCollectionDocuments/pdf/presentations/investor/20100205-transcript.pdf. |date=30 June 2015 }} Syngenta, 5 February 2010 In 2010, the US EPA approved insecticidal trait stacks including Syngenta's AGRISURE VIPTERA™ gene, which offers resistance to certain corn pests. Syngenta cross-licenses its proprietary genes with Dow AgroSciences and thus is able to include Dow's Herculex I and Herculex RW insect resistance traits in its seeds. It sells a VMAX soybean that is resistant to glyphosate herbicide. In 2021 the company partnered with Hong Kong-based Insilico Medicine to develop "sustainable weedkillers" by using AI deep-learning tools.Andrew Noël and Agnieszka de Sousa, "[https://www.newspapers.com/article/messenger-inquirer-ai-is-becoming-a-weap/125166851/ AI is becoming a weapon in the battle against pests]", Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer (via Bloomberg News, 7 February 2021), p. A5.
Syngenta brands include Actara (Thiamethoxam), Agrisure (corn with Viptera trait), Alto (Cyproconazole), Amistar (azoxystrobin), Avicta, Axial, Bicep II, Bravo, Callisto, Celest, Cruiser (TMX, Thiamethoxam), Dividend, Dual, Durivo, Elatus, Fusilade, Force, Golden Harvest, Gramoxone, Karate, Northrup-King (NK), Proclaim, Revus, Ridomil, Rogers, Score, Seguris, S&G, Tilt, Topik, Touchdown, Vertimec and Vibrance.
In 2007, Queensland University in Australia contracted with Syngenta to research different inputs for biofuels as a renewable energy source.{{Cite web|url=http://media.cleantech.com/1965/syngenta-queensland-university-in-biofuel-research|archive-url=https://archive.today/20070801171634/http://media.cleantech.com/1965/syngenta-queensland-university-in-biofuel-research|url-status=dead|title=Syngenta in Australian biofuel research|date=1 August 2007|archive-date=1 August 2007|website=cleantech.com|access-date=10 April 2018}}
=Former products=
Syngenta's predecessor, Ciba-Geigy, introduced the insecticide Galecron chlordimeform in 1966, and it was removed from the market in 1988.World Health Organization [http://apps.who.int/bookorders/anglais/detart1.jsp?codlan=1&codcol=16&codcch=199# Chlordimeform] Environmental Health Criteria, No 199. {{ISBN|9789241571999}} In 1976, Ciba-Geigy told regulatory authorities that it was temporarily withdrawing chlordimeform because ongoing long-term toxicology studies—particularly studies to determine if long-term exposure could cause cancer—showed that it was causing cancer and that it has already started to monitor its workers' exposure and had found chlordimeform and its metabolites in the urine of its workers.Environmental Protection Agency Office Of Pesticide Programs Case Number 0141 [http://nepis.epa.gov/Exe/ZyNET.exe/93000PJA.PDF?ZyActionP=PDF&Client=EPA&Index=1981%20Thru%201985&File=D%3A%5CZYFILES%5CINDEX%20DATA%5C81THRU85%5CTXT%5C00000024%5C93000PJA.txt&Query=&SearchMethod=1&FuzzyDegree=0&User=ANONYMOUS&Password=anonymous&QField=&UseQField=&IntQFieldOp=0&ExtQFieldOp=0&Docs= Guidance for the Reregistration Of Pesticide Products Containing Chlordimeform or Chlordimeform Hydrochloride As Active Ingredients 059701 and 059702]{{rp|8–9}}
Ciba-Geigy then applied for and was granted, permission to market Galecron at lower doses for use only on cotton.{{cite web|url=http://www.inchem.org/documents/jmpr/jmpmono/v078pr07.htm |title=431. Chlordimeform (Pesticide residues in food: 1978 evaluations) |publisher=Inchem.org |date= |accessdate=2014-02-04}} However, as further long-term monitoring data was obtained, regulators banned chlordimeform in 1988. In 1995, class action in the US, Ciba-Geigy agreed to cover costs for employee health monitoring and treatment. In 2005, Syngenta reported that employee health monitoring was continuing at the company's Monthey, Switzerland site.{{cite web|url=http://www2.syngenta.com/en/downloads/050512_Galecron_en.pdf |title=Syngenta Global Website – Bringing plant potential to life |publisher=.syngenta.com |date=2013-12-17 |access-date=2014-02-04 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060929134843/http://www.syngenta.com/en/downloads/050512_Galecron_en.pdf |archive-date=29 September 2006 }}
=Biofuels=
Like many agriculture companies, Syngenta also works in the biofuel space. In 2011, it announced the corn trait Enogen to reduce the consumption of water and energy versus conventional corn.{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/12/business/12corn.html?_r=0 |title=U.S. Approves Corn Modified for Ethanol |work=The New York Times |date=2011-02-11 |accessdate=2014-05-03}} In 2007, Queensland University in Australia contracted with Syngenta to research different inputs for biofuels as a renewable energy source.{{cite web|url=http://media.cleantech.com/1965/syngenta-queensland-university-in-biofuel-research|archive-url=https://archive.today/20070801171634/http://media.cleantech.com/1965/syngenta-queensland-university-in-biofuel-research|url-status=dead|title=Syngenta in Australian biofuel research |author=|date=1 August 2007|archive-date=1 August 2007|website=cleantech.com|access-date=10 April 2018}}
Other activities
=Lobbying=
Syngenta is in the transparency register of the European Union as a registered lobbyist. For 2017, it declared a €1.5 to €1.75 million expenditure of lobbying in European institutions.{{Cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/transparencyregister/public/consultation/displaylobbyist.do?id=16822412339-79|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180808033810/http://ec.europa.eu/transparencyregister/public/consultation/displaylobbyist.do?id=16822412339-79|title=European Register|archive-date=8 August 2018}}
Syngenta formed a political action committee (PAC) to process its U.S. lobbying, called Syngenta Corporation Employee PAC, or SyngentaPAC.{{Cite web |title=PAC Profile: Syngenta Corp |url=https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/syngenta-corp/C00363945/summary/2024 |access-date=2025-02-19 |website=OpenSecrets |language=en}} The company stated it is an employee-funded organization for supporting U.S. lawmakers.{{Cite news |last=Sheehey |first=Maeve |date=May 23, 2024 |title=China-Tied Food Companies Fight Curbs on US Farmland Ownership |url=https://news.bgov.com/bloomberg-government-news/china-tied-food-firms-resist-land-limits-as-lawmakers-seek-curbs |access-date=February 19, 2025 |work=Bloomberg}}
Syngenta's contributions to U.S. federal candidates, parties, and outside groups totaled $140,822 during the 2018 election cycle, ranking it 20th on the list of companies in its sector.{{Cite web|url=https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/contrib.php?ind=A07&Bkdn=DemRep&cycle=2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180808034141/https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/contrib.php?ind=A07&Bkdn=DemRep&cycle=2018|title=Agricultural Services & Products: Top Contributors to Federal Candidates, Parties, and Outside Groups|archive-date=8 August 2018}} Its lobbying expenditures in the U.S. during 2018 were $770,000, ranking it 7th in its sector.{{Cite web|url=https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/lobbying.php?cycle=2012&ind=A07|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180808034150/https://www.opensecrets.org/industries/lobbying.php?cycle=2012&ind=A07|title=Agricultural Services & Products: Lobbying, 2018|archive-date=8 August 2018}} The company spent $1 million in U.S. federal lobbying in 2023.
Litigation
In 2001, the United States Patent and Trademark Office ruled in favor of Syngenta which had filed a suit against Bayer for patent infringement on a class of neonicotinoid insecticides. The following year Syngenta filed suits against Monsanto and other companies claiming infringement of its U.S. biotechnology patents covering genetically modified corn and cotton. In 2004, it again filed a suit against Monsanto, claiming antitrust violations related to the U.S. biotech corn seed market, and Monsanto countersued. Monsanto and Syngenta settled all litigation in 2008.{{Cite web|last=Zuhn|first=Donald|date=2008-05-30|title=Monsanto and Syngenta Settle All Litigation Between the Companies|url=http://www.patentdocs.org/2008/05/monsanto-and-sy.html|access-date=2014-02-04|publisher=Patent Docs}}
Syngenta was the defendant in a class action lawsuit by the city of Greenville, Illinois concerning the adverse effects of atrazine on human water supplies. The suit was settled for $105 million in May 2012.[http://www.atrazinesettlement.com/ City of Greenville v. Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc., and Syngenta AG Case No. 3:10-cv-00188-JPG-PMF], accessed 23 August 2013{{Cite news|last=Berry|first=Ian|date=2012-05-25|title=Syngenta Settles Weedkiller Lawsuit-US|work=Wall Street Journal|url=https://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304840904577426172221346482.html|access-date=2020-11-05|issn=0099-9660}}Clare Howard [http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/news/2013/atrazine Special Report: Syngenta's campaign to protect atrazine, discredit critics.] Environmental Health News, 17 June 2013 A similar case involving six states has been in federal court since 2010.{{Cite journal|last1=Dalton|first1=Rex|title=E-mails spark ethics row|doi=10.1038/466913a|journal=Nature|volume=466|issue=7309|pages=913|year=2010|pmid=20725013|doi-access=free}}
In the U.S., Syngenta is facing lawsuits from farmers and shipping companies regarding Viptera genetically modified corn. The plaintiffs in nearly 30 states contend that Syngenta's introduction of Viptera drove down U.S. grain market prices, leading to financial harm, and that Syngenta acted irresponsibly by doing too little to enable shipping companies to export the grain to approved ports.{{Cite web|url=http://www.agriculture.com/crops/corn/technology/syngenta-speaks-out-about-viptera_139-ar45942|title=Syngenta Speaks Out About Viptera, Duracade Launch|publisher=Agriculture.Com|date=2014-10-31|access-date=2015-09-04}} Before Viptera's 2010 introduction Syngenta secured all U.S. and NCGA-recommended export approvals, but none from China. China had imported little to no U.S. grain prior to 2010, and at the time was not considered a major partner, which changed in 2010, when it dramatically increased U.S. grain imports. For three years, China imported U.S. Viptera grain without formal approval. In November 2013, Chinese officials destroyed a U.S. grain shipment containing Viptera grain and began rejecting all U.S. shipments with the GM grain, but continued to accept it from all countries other than the U.S. The same year, U.S. corn market prices dropped $4 per bushel, causing over $2.9 billion in losses, with just over half of that loss occurring prior to China's November rejection.{{Cite web|url=http://www.ers.usda.gov/datafiles/Feed_Grains_Yearbook_Tables/Domestic_and_International_Prices/FGYearbookTable09.xls|title=Table 9--Corn and sorghum: Average prices received by farmers, United States|publisher=USDA|date=2015-08-17|access-date=2015-09-04|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150922021559/http://www.ers.usda.gov/datafiles/Feed_Grains_Yearbook_Tables/Domestic_and_International_Prices/FGYearbookTable09.xls|archive-date=22 September 2015 }} China later approved the GM corn in 2014, but U.S. corn grain market prices have since not rebounded. Syngenta lost the first lawsuit to reach trial in Kansas on 23 June 2017, and was ordered to pay the farmers $217 million.{{Cite news|last1=Cronin Fisk|first1=Margaret|last2=Bross|first2=Tim|title=Syngenta Loses $218 Million Verdict in First GMO Trial Test|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-06-23/syngenta-ordered-by-jury-to-pay-218-million-to-kansas-farmers|access-date=23 June 2017|publisher=Bloomberg|date=23 June 2017}} However, Syngenta has stated it would appeal the verdict.
In 2022, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it is initiating litigation against Syngenta, challenging certain US-based discount programs extended to their respective customers.{{Cite web |date=2022-09-29 |title=Syngenta and Corteva, FTC v. |url=https://www.ftc.gov/legal-library/browse/cases-proceedings/191-0031-syngenta-corteva-ftc-v |access-date=2023-09-22 |website=Federal Trade Commission |language=en}}{{Cite news |last=Thomas |first=Patrick |title=Top Agriculture Company Corteva Accuses Startup of Stealing Seeds |url=https://www.wsj.com/business/top-agriculture-company-corteva-accuses-startup-of-stealing-seeds-9b288763 |newspaper=WSJ}} In January 2024, a federal judge ruled that both Corteva and Syngenta must face the FTC lawsuit.{{Cite web |title=Syngenta, Corteva must face FTC lawsuit over pesticide 'loyalty programs' |url=https://www.reuters.com/legal/government/syngenta-corteva-must-face-ftc-lawsuit-over-pesticide-loyalty-programs-2024-01-16/ |website=Reuters}}
= Paraquat and Parkinson's disease =
In June 2021, Syngenta paid $187.5 million to settle an unknown number of cases in Illinois and California, implicating the company's Paraquat herbicide as a cause of Parkinson's disease.{{Cite news |date=2021-09-13 |title=Syngenta, Chevron Could Face Billions in Claims Over Weed Killer |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-09-13/syngenta-chevron-could-face-billions-in-claims-over-weed-killer |access-date=2024-07-13 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}{{Cite journal |title=Notes to the Syngenta AG Group Consolidated Financial Statements |url=https://www.syngenta.com/sites/syngenta/files/bond-investor-information/financial-results/Syngenta-AG-2021-Financial-Report.pdf |journal=Syngenta Financial Report 2021 |volume=2021 |pages=52}}
In 2024 more than 5,000 Americans have active lawsuits against Syngenta, alleging ties between use of the paraquat herbicide product, Gramoxone, and the onset of Parkinson's disease. Syngenta denies any causal link between its product and Parkinson's disease.{{Cite news |last=Pierson |first=Brendan |date=April 17, 2024 |title=Judge rejects key expert in paraquat lawsuits, tosses first cases set for trial |url=https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/judge-rejects-key-expert-paraquat-lawsuits-tosses-first-cases-set-trial-2024-04-17/ |access-date=July 29, 2024 |work=Reuters}} Syngenta took steps in April 2025 to resolve the majority of approximately 5,800 lawsuits pending in multidistrict litigation in federal court in Illinois.{{Cite news |last=Gillam |first=Carey |date=2025-04-15 |title=Weedkiller maker moves to settle suit over Parkinson’s disease claims |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/apr/15/syngenta-weedkiller-parkinsons |access-date=2025-04-17 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}} In addition, there were approximately 450 lawsuits pending in California state court and many more in state courts across the country.
Internal documents from Syngenta, unsealed as part of court proceedings, showed a memo from the company's head of regulatory sciences, Lewis Smith, warning about the scientific consensus that paraquat was linked to Parkinson's disease.{{Cite news |date=2025-01-22 |title=70 countries have banned this pesticide. It’s still for sale in the U.S. |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/01/22/paraquat-epa-pesticide-parkinsons/ |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20250419132650/https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/01/22/paraquat-epa-pesticide-parkinsons/ |archive-date=2025-04-19 |access-date=2025-04-25 |work=The Washington Post |language=en}}
Controversies
In 2007, Syngenta came under scrutiny by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. This was due to third-party sales of products in countries such as Iran, Cuba, North Korea, Sudan, and Syria.{{Cite web|last=Oliver Stock|title=Syngenta: Heikle Ware|url=https://www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/industrie/syngenta-heikle-ware/2834788.html|access-date=2020-11-04|website=Handelsblatt|language=de}}
In the past, Syngenta's crop protection products have also been the subject of repeated criticism. The company was accused of including the sale of highly toxic pesticides in its business model.{{Cite web|title=Syngentas giftiges Geschäftsmodell|url=https://www.publiceye.ch/de/themen/pestizide/syngenta|access-date=2020-11-04|website=PublicEye|language=de}} In 2012, the company was therefore nominated for the "Public Eye Award", which denounces companies with questionable human rights practices.{{Cite web|title=Zweifelhafte Ehre für Syngenta|url=https://www.handelszeitung.ch/unternehmen/zweifelhafte-ehre-fuer-syngenta|access-date=2020-11-04|website=Handelszeitung|language=de}} In 2023, the Arkansas attorney general Tim Griffin ordered Syngenta to sell land in the state under a prohibition against land sales to entities with "a connection to a country subject to the federal International Traffic in Arms Regulations."{{Cite news |last=Sparkman |first=Worth |date=October 17, 2023 |title=Arkansas AG orders Chinese company to sell land |work=Axios |url=https://www.axios.com/local/nw-arkansas/2023/10/17/northrup-king-seed-sell-chinese-arkansas |access-date=October 18, 2023}}
=Brazil=
On 21 October 2007, a Brazilian peasant organization, the Landless Workers' Movement, led a group of landless farmers in an invasion of one of the company's seed research farms, in protest against genetically-engineered ("genetically modified") vegetables and in hopes of obtaining land for landless families to cultivate. After the invasion had begun, a team from NF Security arrived in a minibus and a fight with gunfire ensued. A trespasser and a security guard were killed, and some trespassers and other security guards were wounded.{{Cite journal|last=Doyle|first=Leonard|title=Brazilian land activist killed in dispute over experimental GM farm|journal=The Independent|date=5 November 2007|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/brazilian-land-activist-killed-in-dispute-over-experimental-gm-farm-399021.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220526/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/brazilian-land-activist-killed-in-dispute-over-experimental-gm-farm-399021.html |archive-date=26 May 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|access-date=2013-05-26 }}
The Brazilian police investigation, which concluded in November 2007, blamed the confrontation and death of the trespasser on nine employees and the owner of NF Security; the leader of MST was blamed for trespassing. The inquiry found that the invader was fatally shot in the abdomen and in the leg. The security guard was shot in the head. Eight others were injured, five of them invaders.{{Cite web|last=Miguel Portela, CASCAVEL|title=Polícia indicia seguranças por morte|trans-title=Police indicate security guards for death|url=http://www.contag.org.br/indexdet.php?modulo=portal&acao=interna2&codpag=101&id=1669&mt=1&pt=1|access-date=2020-11-05|website=Contag|language=pt}}
The Civil Court of Cascavel granted an order for the repossession of the site on 20 December 2007{{Cite web|last=Marcus Vinícius|date=2007-12-28|title=A multa continua|trans-title=The fine continues|url=http://www.bemparana.com.br/politicaemdebate/index.php/2007/12/28/a-multa-continua/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130724092229/http://www.bemparana.com.br/politicaemdebate/index.php/2007/12/28/a-multa-continua/|url-status=dead|archive-date=2013-07-24|access-date=2020-11-05|website=Bemparana}} and on 12 June 2008, the remaining MST members left the Santa Teresa site they had been occupying.{{Cite web|title=Desocupação da fazenda da multinacional Syngenta é finalizada |trans-title=Syngenta's multinational farm is terminated|url=https://www.bemparana.com.br/noticia/desocupacao-da-fazenda-da-multinacional-syngenta-e-finalizada-69861|access-date=2020-11-05|publisher=Bem Paraná|date=11 June 2008 |language=pt-br}} On 14 October 2008, Syngenta donated the 123-hectare station to the Agronomy Institute of Paraná (IAPAR) for research into biodiversity, recovery of degraded areas and agriculture production systems, as well as environmental education programs.
In November 2015, Judge Pedro Ivo Moreiro, of the 1st Civil Court of Cascavel, ruled that Syngenta must pay compensation to the family of Valmir Mota de Oliveira ("Keno"), who was killed in the attack, and to Isabel Nascimento dos Santos who was injured.{{Cite web|url=http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/human-rights-mainmenu-40/1901-syngenta-convicted-in-brazil|title=Syngenta convicted in Brazil|access-date=2015-11-20|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151121032233/http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/human-rights-mainmenu-40/1901-syngenta-convicted-in-brazil|archive-date=21 November 2015 }}{{Cite web|last=Direitos|first=Terra de|title=Syngenta condenada: Justiça responsabiliza empresa por morte de sem terra no Paraná|trans-title=Syngenta condemned: Justice holds company responsible for landless death in Paraná|url=http://terradedireitos.org.br/2015/11/18/syngenta-condenada-justica-responsabiliza-empresa-morte-de-sem-terra-no-parana/|access-date=10 April 2018|website=Terradedireitos|language=pt}} In his sentence the judge stated that "to refer to what happened as a confrontation is to close one's eyes to reality, since […] there is no doubt that, in truth, it was a massacre disguised as repossession of property". The version of events put forward by Syngenta was rejected by the Court. In May 2010, Syngenta was condemned by the IV Permanent People's Tribunal for human rights violations in Brazil.{{Cite web|last=Direitos|first=Terra de|title=Syngenta é condenada na Europa por violações de direitos humanos no Brasil|trans-title=Syngenta condemned: Justice holds company responsible for landless death in Paraná|url=http://terradedireitos.org.br/2010/05/17/syngenta-e-condenada-na-europa-por-violacoes-de-direitos-humanos-no-brasil/|access-date=10 April 2018|website=Terradedireitos|language=pt}}
=Tyrone Hayes=
There has been a long-running conflict between Syngenta and University of California at Berkeley biologist Tyrone Hayes.
In 2010, Syngenta forwarded an ethics complaint to the University of California Berkeley, complaining that Hayes had been sending sexually explicit and harassing e-mails to Syngenta scientists. Legal counsel from the university responded that Hayes had acknowledged sending letters having "unprofessional and offensive" content, and that he had agreed not to use similar language in future communications.{{Cite journal|last1=Dalton|first1=Rex|title=E-mails spark ethics row|journal=Nature|date=18 August 2010|volume=466|issue=7309|pages=913|doi=10.1038/466913a|pmid=20725013|doi-access=free }}
According to an article in the 10 February 2014, issue of The New Yorker, Syngenta's public-relations team took steps to discredit Hayes, whose research is purported to suggest that the Syngenta-produced chemical atrazine was responsible for abnormal development of reproductive organs in frogs. The article states that the company paid third-party critics to write articles discrediting Hayes's work, planned to have his wife investigated, and planted hostile audience members at scientific talks given by Hayes.{{Cite magazine|last=Aviv|first=Rachel|title=A Valuable Reputation|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2014/02/10/a-valuable-reputation|access-date=2020-11-05|magazine=The New Yorker|date=3 February 2014}}
During a 21 February 2014, interview conducted on Democracy Now, Hayes reiterated the claims.Juan Gonzalez and Amy Goodman for Democracy Now. 21 February 2014. [http://www.democracynow.org/2014/2/21/silencing_the_scientist_tyrone_hayes_on Silencing the Scientist: Tyrone Hayes on Being Targeted by Herbicide Firm Syngenta] After the interview aired, Syngenta denied targeting Hayes or making any threats, calling those statements "uncorroborated and intentionally damaging" and demanding a retraction and public apology from Hayes and Democracy Now.{{Cite web|url=http://www.atrazine.com/news_releases/news.aspx?id=180179|title=Syngenta Defends Senior Scientist|publisher=Syngenta|date=2014-03-07|access-date=2014-03-22}}
= Response to Russian invasion of Ukraine =
Syngenta continues to operate in Russia despite the ongoing invasion of Ukraine and international sanctions imposed on the Russian economy.{{Cite web |title=Syngenta |url=https://leave-russia.org/uk/syngenta |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=leave-russia.org |language=uk}} The company remains a major player in the Russian agricultural sector, supplying pesticides and seeds to local farmers. It has been criticized for maintaining business-as-usual in the country, earning an "F" grade in a ranking of companies that have failed to exit or reduce their activities in Russia.{{Cite web |title=Over 1,000 Companies Have Curtailed Operations in Russia—But Some Remain {{!}} Yale School of Management |url=https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/over-1000-companies-have-curtailed-operations-russia-some-remain |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=som.yale.edu |language=en}} It was condemned for prioritizing profits over ethics.{{Cite web |date=2022-04-15 |title=Hunger games: Ukrainians slam Western agribusinesses for staying in Russia |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/agribusinesses-russia-ukraine-volodymyr-zelenskyy-vladimir-putin-eu-agriculture-basf-syngenta/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=POLITICO |language=en-GB}} Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has denounced companies that continue operating in Russia, stating that the Russian market is "flooded with blood." Syngenta has not only remained in Russia but has also announced price increases on its products, raising questions about whether it is exploiting the situation for financial gain. Critics argue that its continued operations strengthen Russia's agricultural industry, indirectly supporting the country’s war efforts.{{Cite web |title=Russian subsidiary of Syngenta to raise prices 12% as of Sept 1 |url=https://interfax.com/newsroom/top-stories/93611/ |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=interfax.com}} However, Syngenta also has maintained business as usual in Ukraine, taking similar or the same actions there. {{Cite web |title=Syngenta Group’s subsidiary, Syngenta AG, publishes its 2023 full year results |url=https://news.agropages.com/News/NewsDetail---49719.htm |access-date=2025-03-05 |website=agropages.com}}
See also
- {{Portal inline|Companies}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category|Syngenta}}
- {{official website}}
- Canadian website: https://www.syngenta.ca
{{Genetic engineering}}
{{Authority control}}
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