New Trade Case Could Raise Costs for Glyphosate from China

The Petitions

Monsanto Company and its wholly owned subsidiary Ruveon LLC have filed petitions with the U.S. Department of Commerce (“DOC”) and the U.S. International Trade Commission (“ITC”) seeking the imposition of antidumping (“AD”) and countervailing duties (“CVD”) on imports into United States glyphosate from China. The petitions allege that imported glyphosate from China are being sold in the United States at unfairly low prices, and in some cases, benefit from unfair government subsidies, causing material injury to the domestic industry. If the federal agencies agree, imports of glyphosate could become subject to significant additional duties.

What is Glyphosate and How is It Used?

The subject merchandise—Glyphosate—is a broad-spectrum, post-emergent systemic herbicide used extensively in U.S. agriculture, particularly in corn and soybean production. It is sold in several forms, including glyphosate acid, glyphosate salts, and formulated herbicide products, all of which ultimately serve the same end use of weed control.

Imports of glyphosate products from China are already affected by existing trade measures. While glyphosate acid and salt were included in List 3 of the Section 301 tariffs, they are currently exempt from the additional duties through November 9, 2026 pursuant to exclusions granted by the U.S. Trade Representative. Formulated glyphosate, however, remains subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem duty.

The current petitions are not the first trade remedy proceedings involving glyphosate. In March 2010, Albaugh, Inc. filed an antidumping petition covering glyphosate from China. The petition was withdrawn shortly thereafter, and the U.S. International Trade Commission terminated its investigation before reaching a preliminary injury determination. The Department of Commerce likewise did not initiate an investigation.

For importers, distributors, agricultural retailers, and companies throughout the crop protection supply chain, these petitions warrant close attention. If Commerce reaches affirmative preliminary determinations, importers of glyphosate products from China could become subject to significant cash deposit requirements within a matter of months, potentially affecting pricing, sourcing decisions, and product availability.

Scope of the Investigations

The following language describes the imported merchandise that Petitioners intends to cover in these investigations:

What Merchandise is Covered?

The merchandise covered by this investigation consists of glyphosate (N(phosphonomethyl) glycine) in all forms, concentrations, and formulations, except where expressly excluded by this scope. Pure glyphosate is a crystalline solid or powder with the chemical formula C3H8NO5P and chemical abstract number (“CAS”) 1071-83-6.

Covered merchandise includes glyphosate in the following forms: N-(Phosphonomethyl)iminodiacetic acid (“PMIDA” or “glyphosate intermediate,” dry crystalline powder with chemical formula C5H10NO7P and CAS number 5994-61-6); glyphosate technical (dry powder with chemical formula C3H8NO5P and CAS number 1071-83-6); and glyphosate salt (dry crystalline solid, dry powder, or soluble liquid with CAS numbers 38641-94-0, 39600-42-5, or 40465-66-5).

Covered merchandise also includes all glyphosate formulations, which are soluble liquids or dry powder. Non-glyphosate components of glyphosate formulations include surfactants such as (but not limited to) AGM 550 (chemical description: Propoxylated and ethoxylated alkyl ether amine; CAS number 176022-82-5), Tallowamine ethoxylate (chemical description: Polyethoxylated tallow amine; CAS number 61971-26-2), Cocoamine ethoxylate (chemical description: Polyethoxylated coco amine; CAS number 61791-31-9), C 6182 (chemical description: Blend of polyethoxylated tallow amine and phosphate ester; CAS number 61971-26-2), and Break-Thru S240 (chemical description: Polyether trisiloxane; CAS number 134180-76-0). Glyphosate formulations are covered in their entirety, including non-glyphosate content.

How is the Country of Origin Determined?

The country of origin is determined based on the synthesis of the glyphosate or PMIDA. The processing of covered merchandise in a third country—such as by commingling, diluting, chemical conversion from PMIDA to glyphosate, introducing additives, or removing additives—does not remove the merchandise from the scope.

Excluded from the scope is any product covered by the existing antidumping and countervailing duty orders on 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid from the People’s Republic of China. See 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid From India and the People’s Republic of China: Antidumping Duty Orders, 90 Fed. Reg. 22,243 (May 27, 2025); 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic Acid From the People’s Republic of China and India: Countervailing Duty Orders, 90 Fed. Reg. 22,232 (May 27, 2025). Glyphosate esters are also excluded from the scope.

Subject merchandise presently enters the United States under HTSUS subheadings 2931.49.0020 (glyphosate technical and salt) and 3808.93.5020 (formulated glyphosate). Subject merchandise may also enter under HTSUS 2931.49.0080 if entered in the form of PMIDA. Although the HTSUS statistical reporting numbers and CAS numbers are provided for convenience and customs purposes, the written description of the scope of this investigation is dispositive.

Key Facts

Petitioners: Monsanto Company and its wholly owned subsidiary Ruveon LLC

Foreign Producers/Exporters and U.S. Importers:  The petitions identify a number of companies. Businesses that may be affected should review the petitions carefully and assess whether they are named directly or implicated through supply-chain relationships. Please contact Clark Hill’s International Trade team for a listing of individual importers and exporters named in the petitions.

AD/CVD margins: The Petitioners alleged the following AD and CVD margins:

• China: AD Margin from 68.90% to 446.47%  ad valorem, and a CVD margin above de minimis.

The Investigations

The DOC and ITC will conduct parallel investigations. The ITC examines whether the domestic industry is materially injured or threatened with material injury. The DOC determines whether dumping or subsidization exists, and if so, calculates the duty rates that importers must deposit.

If the DOC issues an affirmative preliminary determination, importers will be required to deposit the estimated AD/CVD duties on their imports as of the date that the DOC publishes its affirmative preliminary determination in the Federal Register. In this case, the DOC’s preliminary determinations are currently expected by September 23, 2026 (CVD) and December 7, 2026 (AD), although the schedule is subject to change. Importers should also be alert to the possibility of a critical circumstances finding, which in some cases can allow duty liability to date back to before the preliminary determination if the DOC finds that there is a surge of imports after the petitions were filed.

Next Steps

AD/CVD investigations are front-loaded. Key decisions are made early, and companies that wait until duties are imposed may lose important opportunities to shape the record.

Companies that import, purchase, sell, distribute, or use potentially covered glyphosate should begin assessing their exposure now. Practical steps include confirming whether imported products fall within the proposed scope, identifying the country of manufacture and any third-country processing or assembly, reviewing whether the company is listed in the petitions, preserving import and sales records, and coordinating internally among legal, finance, procurement, sales, logistics, and operations teams. If your company imports glyphosate, purchases products containing glyphosate, or may otherwise be affected by these investigations, please contact Clark Hill’s International Trade team for additional details and strategic guidance.

A schedule of approximate key dates is below.

Approximate Key Dates*
Antidumping Duty Investigation
Event	No. of Days	Date of Action
Petition Filed	0	6/30/2026
DOC Initiation Date	20	7/20/2026
DOC Separate Rate Applications	41	8/10/2026
DOC Q&V Questionnaires	44	8/13/2026
ITC Preliminary Determination	45	8/14/2026
DOC Preliminary AD Determination	160	12/7/2026
DOC Final AD Determination	235	2/22/2027
ITC Final AD Determination	280	4/6/2027
DOC AD Publication of Order	287	4/13/2027
Countervailing Duty Investigation
Event	No. of Days	Date of Action
Petition Filed	0	6/30/2026
DOC Initiation Date	20	7/20/2026
DOC Q&V Questionnaires	44	8/13/2026
ITC Preliminary Determination	45	8/14/2026
DOC Preliminary CVD Determination	85	9/23/2026
Request for a DOC Hearing	122	10/30/2026
DOC Final CVD Determination	160	12/7/2026
ITC Final CVD Determination	205	1/21/2027
DOC CVD Publication of Order	212	1/28/2027

 

* All deadlines are approximate and are subject to change throughout the course of an investigation. Deadlines that fall on a weekend or federal holiday are extended to the next business day, as shown above. Contact Clark Hill for current updates and details.

Contact Clark Hill

If you have questions regarding the content of this alert, please contact any member of Clark Hill’s International Trade Practice:

• Mark Ludwikowski (mludwikowski@clarkhill.com; 202.640.6680)
• Kevin Williams (kwilliams@clarkhill.com; 312.985.5907)
• Kelsey Christensen (kchristensen@clarkhill.com; 202.230.9889)
• Aristeo Lopez (alopez@clarkhill.com; 202.552.2366)
• Laura M. Quesada (Lquesada@clarkhill.com; 202.240.0170)
• Amal Sheheen (asheheen@clarkhill.com; 202-552-2354)
• Onjoly Purification (Opurification@clarkhill.com; 202.552.2361)

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