SHAUNAVON, Sask. – Ben Lewans said he is set to take his three-year battle with Viterra and Bayer Crop Science to the courtroom after the two companies turned down a mediated settlement.
The 64-year-old Shaunavon, Sask., farmer sued after his 2007 canola crop emerged poorly and eventually yielded seven bushels per acre. Surrounding fields yielded about 30 bu. per acre.
In February 2010, a mediated settlement was proposed and accepted by Lewans, but the companies have since turned it down.
“I would like to advise farmers if they feel they have serious problems with their crops they should hire their own independent agrologist and team up with their lawyer.”
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Lewans said he believes something was wrong with either the SP621 RR canola seed he bought from Viterra, then still known as Saskatchewan Wheat Pool, or the seed treatment Prosper FL, sold by Bayer.
Photographs show seedlings that died shortly after emerging and others with stems that are narrowed at the plant base. Lewans said seedling blight was the cause of his problems.
“I’ve been growing canola since 1991,” he said. “I know how to grow canola. I’ve never had a failure like this.”
Both companies were contacted about Lewans’ claims but declined to comment.
The 2007 canola market was so attractive that Lewans, who farms with his son, Mike, seeded 1,100 acres of canola, or about one-third of their acres.
“The conditions for canola that spring were ideal as far as I was concerned,” Lewans said.
They seeded between May 1 and 9 and received 12 millimetres of rain.
Lewans realized by May 25 the canola crop wasn’t doing well. He reported poor emergence to Viterra that day and after visits from company representatives, including an agrologist, he expected to receive compensation.
“Finally on July 12, I got a second-hand phone call,” Lewans said. “Head office had phoned Shaunavon and they said that they’re not assuming any responsibility for the crop because the germination tests on the seed lot were good.”
While he was waiting to hear back from Viterra, Lewans also began to consider the effect of the seed treatment. This was the first time he had used seed treated with Prosper rather than Helix.
He said Viterra told him that if he believed Prosper was the problem, he would have to pursue Bayer.
Lewans said he was taken aback because he had no say about what seed treatment was used.
When he phoned the Bayer representative, he was told “nothing can possibly happen with Prosper.”
Lewans hired Backtrack Investigations, which produced a report on the crop, weather, and farming practices of the Lewanses but not until the spring of 2008.
That report concluded the problem had to be the seed or seed vigour or the seed treatment.
Lewans said Viterra again denied responsibility and said there is no reliable vigour test for canola.
He eventually sued Viterra and Bayer under the Consumer Protection Act for selling a product that didn’t perform as advertised.
The canola that Lewans was able to sell went for an average $12.36 per bu.
He sued for 23 bu. per acre at that price, or more than $300,000. He has spent about $50,000 in investigative and legal fees.
