California Berry Cultivars issues statement “setting the record straight” on its recent litigation victory against Driscoll’s
California Berry Cultivars (CBC) has issued a response to Driscoll’s announcement that it would appeal a ruling by a US federal court that found in favour of CBC California Berry Cultivars in a long-running patent infringement case between the two companies.
Driscoll’s accuses CBC of unlawfully incorporating the Watsonville berry company’s proprietary fruit varieties into its own breeding programme, a claim CBC strongly denies.
On 21 May, CBC issued a statement claiming Driscoll’s had mischaracterised the circumstances of the litigation and shown “a profound disrespect for the District Court and our judicial system in addition to CBC”, and that it wished to set to record straight.
The statement reads: “On 7 April, 2025, after having already dismissed several of Driscoll’s claims pursuant to CBC’s Motions to Dismiss, the US District Court for the Eastern District of California granted CBC’s Motion for Summary Judgment, resolving all of Driscoll’s remaining claims in CBC’s favour. After five years of litigation and extensive discovery, including significant document production and multiple witness depositions, the federal District Court found Driscoll’s claims to be so lacking in legal or factual support that they did not merit a trial, and so the Court granted CBC judgment as a matter of law.
“Now having suffered this defeat, Driscoll’s issues a press release making the same allegations the federal District Court comprehensively rejected. CBC has consistently operated with integrity in its breeding programmes and has successfully developed and commercialised numerous strawberry varieties in compliance with settled law. Driscoll’s press release is stunning considering the District Court’s orders, but it is also symptomatic of the larger problem of Driscoll’s bullying business practices.
“Though the press release makes much of Driscoll’s filing an appeal, court records confirm Driscoll’s is actively moving to dismiss that appeal. Were Driscoll’s to pursue its appeal, it would not only lose substantively, but it would further risk making appellate authority reaffirming Driscoll’s inability to preclude the development of new strawberry varieties by its competitors and thus further undermine Driscoll’s anti-competitive business model and practices.
“CBC remains focused on innovation. It is likewise well past time for Driscoll’s to respect the federal District Court’s ruling, which is only the latest in a series of orders rejecting all of Driscoll’s claims and allegations in CBC’s favour.”
