The Federal Trade Commission is investigating farm equipment giant John Deere over its repair practices, according to a civil investigative demand (CID) newly made public.
The agency is looking into whether John Deere "has engaged in or is engaging in unfair, deceptive, anticompetitive, collusive, coercive, predatory, exploitative, or exclusionary acts or practices in or affecting commerce related to the repair of agricultural equipment,” according to the document, which was attached to a petition published in the agency’s legal library Thursday.
The FTC issued the CID, a type of subpoena, on Sept. 16 to Minnesota-based data processing and analytics firm Hargrove and Associates, which helps the Association of Equipment Manufacturers analyze farm equipment market conditions. It requested agricultural equipment sale datasets and tractor and combine reports in the company’s possession.
John Deere spokesman Miles Chiotti said the company is cooperating with the FTC.
The investigation’s reveal comes more than two years after the National Farmers Union, along with six of its state-level affiliates and five “right to repair” advocacy organizations, filed a complaint to the agency alleging John Deere is violating antitrust laws by restricting access to software embedded in its machines.
Deere’s repair policies have in recent years been criticized by some farm groups and repair advocates, who insist the company holds too firm a grip over the tools they believe are needed to repair modern farm equipment.
The farm equipment manufacturer has long insisted it already supports a customer’s right to “safely maintain, diagnose, and repair their equipment," just not the software inside of the high-tech machines. Cory Reed, the president of Deere’s worldwide agriculture and turf division for production and precision ag, told the FTC in 2021 that opening up access to embedded software code to third parties could allow them to illegally tamper with safety and emissions controls. It would also infringe on the company’s intellectual property interests, he added.
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"Deere opposes a right to modify embedded software code,” Reed wrote. "However, we support our customers’ right to repair their own equipment, and we work every day to provide the tools, materials, and guidance that allow our customers to reduce downtime and increase productivity.”
In 2021, President Joe Biden signed an executive order directing the FTC to “limit powerful equipment manufacturers from restricting people’s ability to use independent repair shops or do DIY repairs.” The FTC later announced it would “scrutinize” repair restrictions for violations of antitrust laws and prioritize investigations into any unlawful repair restrictions.
Under Section 5 of the FTC Act, the agency has the jurisdiction to bring Right to Repair cases alleging harm to consumers, harm to competition, or both, FTC spokesperson Betsy Lordan told Agri-Pulse in 2022.
The CID was attached to a Sept. 16 petition by Hargrove and Associates to quash the request, which argued it was “overbroad and unduly burdensome." The petition also claimed the request sought “confidential and commercially sensitive information belonging to AEM member companies” and could subject Hargrove and Associates to claims of breach of contract or unauthorized disclosure of trade secrets.
AEM represents all of the major farm and construction equipment manufacturers, including Deere, Case IH, AGCO, Kubota and others.
“The production of this proprietary member data threatens not only HAI’s reputation and customer goodwill, but also its viability as a going concern,” Michael Lockerby, a lawyer representing the company, wrote in the petition.
Lockerby also wrote that FTC officials have assured him and other lawyers representing Hargrove and Associates that neither the data analytics firm nor the Association of Equipment Manufacturers is a target of the investigation.
National Farmers Union President Rob Larew called the reveal of the FTC investigation into Deere as a "really positive step forward" for repair advocates. He added that he would like to see it result in the agency promulgate a rule requiring equipment manufacturers like Deere to expand access to farmers.
"I would expect that that would work across the the industry, regardless of the manufacturer," Larew said.
Editor's note: This article has been updated to include reaction from NFU president Rob Larew on the investigation.
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