U.S. Food, Farm Groups Detail CFIUS Case Against ChemChina-Syngenta Deal

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In an 18-page letter to nine US Cabinet-level officials, Food & Water Watch joined the National Farmers Union to urge the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. (CFIUS) to block a proposed acquisition of Swiss agribusiness Syngenta by the Chinese state-owned enterprise ChemChina.

“Syngenta presents unique national security concerns,” the two groups wrote. China, the groups state, “can be viewed as a potential geopolitical and economic adversary.... This is especially true for state-owned enterprises from foreign governments with a record of ‘other national security-related matters.’”

Syngenta is a Swiss company with several facilities in the U.S. The letter included a map and accompanying table plotting distances between those facilities and domestic U.S. military installations. According to the letter, Syngenta has 20 operations set up between seven and 86 miles from U.S. military bases.

“Many of Syngenta research labs and production plants are close to U.S. military assets, which could provide a credible base for espionage against the U.S. government or domestic companies,” the letter stated. “Several of the plants are close to high-profile military assets,” such as the Army’s headquarters for military units dedicated to combating weapons of mass destruction. The groups noted that CFIUS has blocked, or purportedly voiced dissatisfaction with, a number of other proposed mergers and acquisitions by Chinese companies over similar proximity issues.

Another aspect of national security that CFIUS should look into is the bid’s effect on global food security and US food production, the letter stated. “Food security is a critical component of national security,” it adds, a view reportedly shared by several CFIUS experts.

The deal could be detrimental to U.S. energy security, which in turn could have a negative impact on U.S. national security, the organizations claimed in their letter. Syngenta has developed biotechnology corn seed traits that yield higher ethanol returns at a time when the US military is under orders to ramp up its use of biofuels, the letter stated. “ChemChina would have the ability to prevent Syngenta from sharing biofuel advancements with the U.S. military,” the letter said. “The proposed ChemChina-Syngenta merger could potentially reduce or foreclose access to biofuels necessary for US military readiness.”

NOTE: This column is copyrighted material; therefore reproduction or retransmission is prohibited under U.S. copyright laws.