Trans Coastal Supply Co Files for Bankruptcy

Trans Coastal Supply Co, one of the largest exporters of livestock feed products in the U.S., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, according to the Wall Street Journal. The company blamed its $28 million in unsecured debt on losses and broken sales contracts after China rejected corn shipments in 2013.

Trans Coastal Supply Co falls into debt

The company’s financial troubles began after the fallout from the Chinese government’s rejection of corn shipments from the U.S. in 2013. In the court filings, the company reported that Syngenta AG supplied genetically-engineered strains to Trans Coastal that had not yet been approved by the Chinese government.

Reuters reported that Trans Coastal’s $28 million trade debt most notably included $12.1 million to CHS Inc, the largest farmer-owned cooperative in the U.S., as well as $3 million to The Andersons Inc. Grewen Plains Inc and Cargill Inc were listed as the other senior debt holders.

Following the rejected corn shipments, Trans Coastal Co became debilitated by abandoned cargos, market devaluation, defaulted customer sales contracts and staggering profit losses.

Flurry of lawsuits

The fallout from the rejected corn shipments resulted in a series of lawsuits between Trans Coastal and Syngenta, as well as the company and its creditors. Currently, the company faces civil litigations from Evergreen Line and JD Heiskell Holdings LLC. According to court papers, JD Heiskell Holdings is suing Trans Coastal Supply Co for approximately $1.6 million for refusal of payment for “tens of thousands of tons of Distiller’s dried grains with solubles”, while Evergreen Line is suing the company for $460,000 involving unpaid ocean freight and shipping-related charges.

The company then sued Syngenta for the rejected genetically-engineered corn which resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in losses.

Syngenta blamed for losses

​According to court papers, Trans Coastal Supply Co cited the failure of Syngenta’s Viptera corn variety for the company’s decision to file for bankruptcy protection. Syngenta is currently involved with more than 180 lawsuits that involve rejected shipments of Viptera corn. Like Trans Coastal, the companies involved in these lawsuits have blamed Syngenta for the collapse of corn prices on the market, which have been a significant hit to the bottom line of livestock product exporters.

Future of Trans Coastal Supply Co

Last month, Syngenta sought to dismiss the lawsuits, stating that it was not liable for Trans Coastal’s losses. However, Trans Coastal filed a motion to oppose any type of dismissal. A ruling on the dismissal request is expected in September.

Currently, Trans Coastal plans to restructure in bankruptcy court, and its lawsuit against Syngenta will continue.

Are you a creditor in a bankruptcy?  Have you been sued by a bankrupt?  If you have any questions about your rights, please contact me, Joel Glucksman, at 201-806-3364.