FTC and states settle pesticide loyalty-program case with Corteva, seeking lower farmer prices
Corteva must end payments to distributors that tied purchases to its products, opening the market to cheaper generic pesticides, the FTC said.
What we know
- The FTC and a coalition of state attorneys general announced a settlement with Corteva Inc. on Sept. 28, 2026, resolving a 2022 antitrust lawsuit against the company. [1] [2]
- For 10 years, Corteva may not condition payments or benefits to distributors on buying more than 50% of their needs for a given pesticide ingredient from Corteva, or limit their purchases of generic equivalents. [2]
- Corteva must pay the state plaintiffs $35 million to resolve their monetary claims. [2]
- The settlement covers only Corteva. Litigation against Syngenta, a co-defendant, continues. [2]
- Not yet confirmed: The order is a stipulated order filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina. It carries the force of law only after the district court judge approves and signs it, and the FTC's release does not say when that will happen.
The Federal Trade Commission and a group of state attorneys general have reached a settlement with pesticide maker Corteva Inc. in an antitrust case over how the company sold to distributors, the FTC said in a post on X and a press release on Sept. 28. [1][2]
Under the agreement, Corteva will dismantle its pesticides loyalty program. The FTC said the program limited distributors' ability to do business with generic competitors that enter the market after Corteva's patents expire. [2]
For 10 years, the stipulated order bars Corteva from conditioning payments or other benefits to a distributor on the distributor buying a high share of a given active ingredient from Corteva. It also bars Corteva from limiting a distributor's purchases of generic equivalents, from setting share-based programs that hold generic purchases below 50%, and from using volume-based programs to recreate those terms. Corteva also may not discriminate against or threaten customers who refuse exclusive or loyalty terms or who deal with its competitors. [2]
The order applies to all of Corteva's post-patent active ingredients, not only the three named in the complaint, the FTC said. Corteva must also pay the state plaintiffs $35 million. [2]
"This settlement will do away with unfair corporate practices that have hurt farmers by impeding the sales of lower-priced products," said FTC Bureau of Competition Principal Deputy Director David Shaw. [2]
The FTC and the states sued Corteva and Syngenta in 2022. The complaint alleges that each company paid distributors end-of-year rewards for buying all or nearly all of their needs for certain pesticides from that company, leaving little room for generics. According to the complaint, this extended the companies' monopolies and forced farmers to overpay. These are allegations. [2]
The FTC said today's settlement resolves only the claims against Corteva and that the case against Syngenta is ongoing. The Commission voted 2-0 to approve the proposed order. The states joining the FTC are California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin. [2]