April 3, 2025 The Midwest Center For Investigative Reporting
Corporate control of farm chemicals, laid bare in legal filings
Since 2004, pesticide prices have jumped by about 40%.
Generic pesticide products can offer a cheaper alternative for farmers. But they also threaten the dominance of multinational corporations that control much of the market.
In this week’s feature story, Sky Chadde examined how Syngenta tried to prevent cheaper generic options from reaching farmers. That effort included suing Willowood USA, which sold a fungicide that competed against Syngenta's flagship product.
Using thousands of pages of court records, including transcripts of trial testimony and exhibits, Sky revealed internal strategies and business discussions often obscured from the public.
The story also looked at Syngenta’s use of a “loyalty program” to reward retailers that push its products, disregarding cheaper alternatives.
The Federal Trade Commission sued Syngenta over its loyalty programs. However, the fate of that FTC lawsuit is unknown.
The commission’s leadership shifted in President Trump’s second term, when Lina Khan, who initiated the lawsuit, was replaced.
During Trump’s first term, his administration allowed three mergers in the pesticide and seed industry, which further consolidated it. Some critics worry the president’s history indicates a willingness to support further monopolization.
“Who is the Trump administration going to stand up for in this case, farmers or agribusiness?”
- Claire Kelloway, food and ag researcher at the Open Markets Institute
Sky’s story is a must-read deep dive into the pesticide industry.
— Ben Felder, editor in chief
GRAPHIC: Trump's trade war with China puts $12.8 in soybean exports at risk
By Mónica Cordero, Investigate Midwest
Soybeans remain the U.S.'s top agricultural export to China, totaling $12.8 billion in 2024 — more than 12 times the value of corn. But escalating tariffs from both countries threaten that trade pipeline, putting Midwest states like Iowa, Illinois, and Minnesota at risk. With China’s new duties on major crops, Caleb Ragland, president of the American Soybean Association, says many producers still haven’t recovered from the 2018 trade war — and warns the new measures could deepen those existing economic challenges.
View the graphic here.
Starting this week, we're rebranding our Graphics of the Week with a fresh new look that better reflects our mission: breaking down complex data through sharp, engaging visuals and spotlighting the numbers behind the powerful forces shaping U.S. agriculture — from meatpacking and climate change to energy, labor, food systems, and public health.
Want us to explore other data trends? Let us know here.
- Lauren Cross
Assistant Editor/Audience Engagement Manager
ICYMI: When big ag flexes its power
By Sky Chadde and Mónica Cordero, Investigate Midwest
This week’s feature dives into Syngenta’s battle to block generic fungicides from reaching farmers — but it’s not the only company flexing market power. Last fall, we investigated Corteva Agriscience, the nation’s largest corn company, and its ties to a labor contractor accused of wage theft and recruiting underage workers in Iowa. Both stories expose how the ag industry’s biggest players can stack the deck, whether it’s against farmworkers or small competitors.
Read more.
Erin Orr, our executive director, is in New York City this week, representing Investigate Midwest in a select cohort of nonprofit newsrooms chosen for the Local Media Association’s Journalism Funding Lab. Over the next six months, we'll be working alongside peers from across the U.S. to explore new ways of funding nonprofit investigative journalism.
Stories from our media partners
How Trump’s funding freeze for Indigenous food programs may violate treaty law, Grist
The $20B question hanging over America’s struggling farmers, Grist
Investigate Midwest is an independent, nonprofit newsroom. Our mission is to serve the public as a watchdog over influential agricultural corporations and institutions through in-depth and data-driven investigative journalism.
