Court rules in favor of patent rights for Pioneer

DES MOINES, Iowa – DuPont recently announced that its subsidiary Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc. has successfully concluded its patent infringement dispute with Genome and Agricultural Biotechnology, LLC over in-plant protection against one of the most destructive pests in North American soybean fields.
Judgment. The United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa in Des Moines issued a consent judgment holding that Pioneer patents 5,491,081; 6,192,967; and 6,538,175 were valid and had been infringed by Genome and Agricultural Biotechnology.
The patents are for the process that uses molecular markers to select soybean varieties resistant to soybean cyst nematode.
Soybean cyst nematode is responsible for $870 million in annual losses to growers in North America. To help growers combat this pest, Pioneer has developed high-yielding resistant varieties in its product lineup through the use of molecular markers.
Property rights. Pioneer has held intellectual property rights for its soybean markers since 1996.
In addition to soybean cyst nematode resistance, the company holds intellectual property rights for the marker-assisted selection process to select soybean varieties with brown stem rot resistance and other valuable traits.