Beekeepers take neonic manufacturers to court

Tuesday, September 2, 2014

by SUSAN MANN

The Ontario government’s plans to introduce a licensing system aimed at targeting neonicotinoid-treated seed use to areas in the province where there’s a demonstrated need is proceeding despite beekeepers launching a class action lawsuit against two pesticide manufacturers.

Law firm Siskinds LLP of London and Toronto filed the suit on behalf of two Ontario beekeepers, Sun Parlor Honey and Munro Honey, Tuesday in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in Windsor. But any beekeeper across Canada can join the suit, says Siskinds partner Paula Lombardi. The suit was filed against Bayer CropScience Inc., Bayer Inc. Bayer AG, Syngenta Canada Inc. and Syngenta International AG.

Beekeepers are seeking to recover more than $400 million in losses due to the historic and continued use of neonicotinoid pesticides. They’re also seeking a change in the manufacturers’ behavior so they investigate and develop a product that doesn’t present the same risks currently affecting the bee population, according to a fact sheet on the lawsuit posted on the Ontario Beekeepers Association website.

Siskinds has agreed to take the case on a contingency basis, and that means they’ll only be paid if a settlement or court award is reached, according to the fact sheet. Their fee would be 25 to 30 per cent of the award.

The statement of claim alleges Bayer and Syngenta were negligent in their design, manufacture, sale and distribution of neonicotinoids. It also alleges the use of neonicotinoids have resulted in:

• Damage to queen breeding stocks.
• Death or damage to bee colonies.
• Contamination to beeswax, honeycombs and hives.
• Decreases in honey production.
• Lost profits and unrecoverable losses for beekeepers.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

In July, Ontario Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Minister Jeff Leal announced the government was considering introducing a licensing system to target the use of neonicotinoid-treated seeds to areas or circumstances where there’s a demonstrated need. Bryan Bossin, Leal’s press secretary, says “the process remains the same here. The goal is still to work with stakeholders to try and find solutions that target the use of the neonicotinoids to areas where there’s a need for them.”

The government plans to hold consultations in the “coming months” with all relevant stakeholders on what will work best for them and how to move forward, he says.

Bossin says the Ontario government won’t comment on the lawsuit itself as “it’s before the courts.” The government wasn’t named in the lawsuit.

Bernie Wiehle of Rodney, an Ontario Beekeepers Association director, says the association isn’t directly involved in the lawsuit. But the association “was instrumental in getting the legal team and the beekeepers who are involved in the lawsuit together and also getting a lot of the background and research information to the law firm.”

The association is also working to connect beekeepers to the law firm so they can join the lawsuit if they want to, says Wiehle, who joined. “The board of the association is very much behind this legal action.”

Wiehle says he’s still reviewing his losses and doesn’t yet have a number. But “it’s been steadily increasing over the years.”

In addition to current beekeepers, former beekeepers that have gone out of business because of the neonicotiniod use can join the suit, he says.

Wiehle says this is the first time beekeepers anywhere in the world have sued pesticide manufacturers over neonicotinoid damage to their livelihood. “Ontario beekeepers are leading this one,” he adds.

Lombardi agrees this is likely the first time beekeepers are suing pesticide manufacturers but previously beekeepers in other jurisdictions have sued regulators of pesticides.

She didn’t have a number for how many beekeepers have joined the class action lawsuit so far but “we have the majority of the big beekeepers in Ontario and we’re getting some from outside Ontario now.”

Wiehle says some beekeepers have been talking about the need to take legal action for almost two years. “We’ve tried very hard to work with the federal government, the provincial government and the chemical industry to come to some sort of an accommodation.” But beekeepers haven’t made much progress with those efforts and “our losses continue to increase.”

The federal government isn’t going to do anything, he says. “We’re not sure what the province (of Ontario) is going to do yet but our losses keep mounting and there’s no change,” he notes. “We had to take a drastic step.”

Barry Senft, CEO of Grain Farmers of Ontario, says the neonicotinoid seed treatment is an approved and regulated product. In addition, “grain farmers are using it in a responsible way.”

In an emailed statement, Chris Davison, head of Syngenta's Canadian corporate affairs, said the company takes concerns about bee health very seriously but that research, "including field studies conducted in Canada, clearly shows that bees and other pollinators can coexist safely with modern agricultural technologies, including neonicotinoids."
 
He adds: "Syngenta and our customers depend on neonicotinoids and other crop protection products to increase crop productivity."

Officials with Bayer CropScience Inc. couldn’t be reached for comment.

Erin O’Hara, senior communications officer with CropLife Canada, says they’re not commenting on the lawsuit because it names specific companies and the association only speaks on industry-wide matters.

Lombardi says the next step in the lawsuit is they will file a motion in Ontario Superior Court to certify the class “that will cover a national class of beekeepers.” The certification motion won’t likely be presented until 2015.

“Once the class is certified there’s a class of people that can proceed with the action,” she explains.

As for how long this case will take, she says class action lawsuits can take an average of three to five years to resolve but the length of time needed for this one would depend on Bayer and Syngenta’s defense and on “whether we enter into settlement negotiations.”

She says they won’t know Bayer and Syngenta’s positions until they file their statements of defense. Those statements will be filed once the class is certified if the court decides to certify it. BF
 

UPDATE: Sept. 4 2014, 11 a.m.

by SUSAN MANN

Bayer CropScience hasn’t been served with the lawsuit but the company is aware some beekeepers “have expressed their intent to file a class action lawsuit against pesticide manufacturers,” marketing communications official Derrick Rozdeba says by email.

He adds that Bayer is the largest buyer of pollination services in Canada “in support of our canola seed business” and that means the company has an abiding interest in bee health. On the other hand, the company also depends on neonicotinoid-treated seed for its canola business.

“We believe the products we develop, market and steward represent the latest innovations in crop protection that have helped make Canadian agriculture productive and sustainable,” he says. BF