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Agriculture

A GMO Carbon Storage Solution, Eggflation and More

Genetically Modified Poplar Trees for Carbon Storage A California biotech company has developed a fast-growing genetically modified poplar tree designed to soak up carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The company, Living Carbon, added genes from pumpkin and green algae into poplars to increase photosynthesis efficiency. As a result, the trees grow faster which enables them to absorb larger amounts of carbon dioxide. While the results seem promising, they are based on greenhouse trials which have not yet been peer reviewed. The company is moving forward with field trials on private land to test how the tress perform in real world conditions. Living Carbon’s ultimate goal is to develop trees and plants

joelcape March 5, 2023

Pesticides

Endangered Species Mitigation and More Legal News | Cape law

EPA Proposes Endangered Species Mitigation Measures for Treated Seed The EPA has been receiving comments to its updated workplan to bring the Agency’s pesticide registration process into compliance with the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The EPA recently admitted that it has never fully complied with its ESA obligations which have been in place since the mid-1970s. As a result, the Agency has been drug into multiple lawsuits over its regulatory failures and the docket continues to grow, consuming the Agency’s resources. The Agency’s ESA workplan aims to improve the defensibility of new pesticide registrations. Enlist One and Enlist Duo were the first herbicides to go through the new ESA review process, resulting in county-specific

joelcape February 24, 2023

Agriculture

Damages for Pesticide Loyalty, Arkansas State Plant Board & More

At least 10 class action anti-trust lawsuits have been filed by farmers against Corteva and Syngenta seeking money damages from inflated prices for pesticides as a result of manufacturers’ distribution loyalty programs which pay pesticide distributors rebates (or bonuses) for selling the manufacturers branded products to the exclusion of generics. Some of the farmer lawsuits also name BASF as well as national distributors, Helena and Nutrien. These class actions follow a similar anti-trust lawsuit filed in September 2022 by the FTC and 10 State Attorney Generals alleging violations of anti-trust laws caused by loyalty programs which we reported last fall (here). The lawsuits allege that when the patents covering the

joelcape February 17, 2023

Agriculture

Farm Lease Auctions, Graduation of an AgTech Moonshot and More

Auctions Gain Popularity for Farm Leases Cash rent auctions for farm leases are a growing trend according to a recent article on Ag Web. While auctions for purchasing land have been around for a long time, the auction format for farm leases is somewhat new. One of the benefits of the auction format is price transparency. “Rent auctions provide true open market rental valuation and answer the question: What will the market bear for my ground,” according to Jim Rothermich of Iowa Appraisal. The cash rental rates traditionally published by the Land-Grant Universities has not necessarily kept pace with actual market data, due in part because the University data relies on

joelcape February 10, 2023

Agriculture

The Great Biofuels Debate | Cape Law Firm | Legal News

The Great Biofuels Debate A recent Wall Street Journal report framed opposing views in the increasingly contentious debate over Biofuels policy and use in the United States. Policies seeking alternatives to fossil fuels have been around for decades, going back at least to the 1970’s when an oil embargo by OPEC countries caused a global energy crises. Government support for alternative fuels, particularly renewable sources such as biofuels, surged forward again in the early 2000’s with legislation that implemented the Renewable Fuels Standard (RNS) mandating the use of renewable fuels in the nation’s fuel supply. The RNS has been a boon to U.S. agriculture, especially for corn and soybean producers, since

joelcape February 3, 2023

Legal News

Federal Trade Commission Seeks Ban on Worker Noncompete Agreements

The Federal Trade Commission has proposed a new rule that will ban employers’ use of non-compete agreements on their employees. Traditionally, noncompete agreements were disfavored and courts often refused to enforce them, reasoning that losing employees to competitors was just ordinary competition and workers should not be unduly burdened in their pursuit of a livelihood. However over the last two decades attitudes towards noncompetes swung in favor of employers among courts and state legislatures by allowing and enforcing the agreements. As a result noncompetes have become fairly pervasive in the U.S. and cover a wide swath of workers, ranging from “hairstylists and warehouse workers to doctors and business executives” according to

joelcape January 13, 2023