The Federal Trade Commission reached a settlement agreement with Corteva, aiming to lower pesticide prices for farmers by ensuring greater access to generic products.

The settlement resolves a lawsuit brought by the FTC and a coalition of state attorneys general in 2022, which alleged Corteva used rebate programs to block competitors from selling cheaper generic insecticides and other chemicals to farmers.

According to the suit, Corteva, a U.S.-based seed and pesticide maker, offered discounts to distributors, as long as the distributors limited their purchases of competing generic pesticides to below a certain threshold. As a result, the suit alleged, farmers' costs have been inflated by hundreds of millions of dollars a year.

Under the terms of the settlement, Corteva will dismantle its existing pesticides loyalty program, the FTC said. The company will also pay $35 million, resolving claims with California, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.

The order additionally prohibits the company from conditioning payments or other benefits to a distributor, as long as that firm purchases a high share of a given pesticide active ingredient from Corteva or similarly limits its purchases of generic equivalents, for a period of 10 years.

"We're pleased to reach a resolution in the FTC matter and continue to focus on our business, our customers and our work: delivering groundbreaking innovation and agronomic support to retailers and farmers around the world," a Corteva spokesperson said.

The settlement announced only resolves the claims against Corteva. The FTC also in 2022 accused Syngenta Group, a Swiss seed and pesticide maker, of artificially inflating prices for farmers. Litigation against Syngenta remains ongoing, the agency said.