PepsiCo Inc has agreed to withdraw lawsuits against Indian potato farmers who, according to the company, have violated a patent by growing a variety exclusively for Lay potato chips.
PepsiCo claims that the company developed and in 2016 registered the FC5 potato variety, which has a reduced moisture content for preparing snacks such as potato chips.
The company demanded through a court to ban farmers from cultivating the FC5 variety, and also demanded the recovery of farmers over 10 million rupees ($ 143,000).
The American producer of snacks and drinks, which, in addition to filing a lawsuit against four farmers in April and suing five other potato producers, has now stated that it wants to resolve the issue peacefully.
“After discussing with the government, the company agreed to withdraw the case against the farmers,” a representative of PepsiCo India said on Thursday May 2, adding that this applies to all nine farmers. PepsiCo did not disclose the details of its consultations with the government, but withdrew its claims against farmers.
PepsiCo, the second largest US company in India that has encountered such problems with patents, according to a company representative, seeks to “find a long-term and friendly solution” to seed protection issues.
