JAKARTA, Indonesia — A Kentucky farmer whose lawsuit against Monsanto alleges the U.S. company intentionally sprayed his fields with genetically modified seeds has agreed to pay $1.1 billion to settle a case in U.K. courts, according to the U,a spokeswoman for the U.-N.
Food and Agriculture Organization.
The U.N. agency said the sum, due in April, will cover compensation for “loss of crop yield, economic loss and disruption of production,” the spokeswoman said.
The settlement includes the $8.7 million to cover the cost of testing of a crop resistant to Monsanto’s GM soybeans and the $4.3 million for crop damage.
The court-ordered payment will be “in line with international standards,” according to a statement from the U-N.
spokesman.
In June, the U.’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) rejected a lawsuit by the U., saying the company was not entitled to the money.
The FFAO’s assessment of the lawsuit is “totally inconsistent with international practices,” the agency said in a statement.
The European Union rejected the U’s complaint, saying it was “not yet certain whether it will be accepted or whether the judgment is binding.”
The case will now be sent to a tribunal, the spokeswoman added.
The suit, which seeks $7 billion in damages, accused Monsanto of violating U.s laws on genetically modified crops and agricultural practices by allowing the genetically modified seed to be used without labeling.
The soybeans were engineered to be resistant to glyphosate, a weedkiller used in the production of Roundup herbicide, a chemical commonly used on corn and other crops to control weeds.
It was the first such lawsuit in the U.
“In February, the FFAOs panel said it was not convinced by the plaintiff’s evidence, which it said was “highly speculative” and “does not meet the threshold required for a final decision” in a case that could be years in the making.
The lawsuit was first filed in 2005.
The company denies using its patented genes to produce the resistant soybeans.
In a statement, the company said it is “confident” it has the technology and the knowledge to control the weeds and other pests on the soybeans “and will be able to make a safe, effective and sustainable transition to our new technology.”
The company also said it has never used GMOs in its crops and that it does not have a “substantial financial stake” in the GM soybean technology.
In May, Monsanto said it had sold about 8 million pounds of GM soy to European farmers.