Bayer sues Syngenta for patent infringement

Bayer AG’s CropScience unit, maker of the Chipco Signature fungicide, has filed a lawsuit claiming Syngenta AG’s Appear product uses its patented technology and falsely claims to be a superior product, Bloomberg News reports.

Bayer filed a complaint April 16 asking a federal court in North Carolina to order the infringement and marketing pitch stopped, as well as cash compensation for any loss of sales or reputation.

The dispute is over a fungicide that includes the compound phthalocyanine, used on citrus plants, golf courses, park lawns and roses. The patent, called “fungicidal compositions for the enhancement of turf quality,” was first issued in 1997.

For Bayer, fungicides, including the Signature line, generated $2.6 billion in sales last year, or about 5 percent of the company’s revenue, data compiled by Bloomberg shows. For Syngenta, fungicides accounted for $3 billion in sales last year, or 23 percent of the company’s revenue, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.