Israeli breeder Kibbutz Ein Dor has been ordered to pay NIS 576,000 (£70,000) in damages to seed company Milchin Brothers, after providing its customer with seedless watermelon seeds that yielded seeded fruit.
Milchin Brothers had subsequently supplied the seeds to its clients, according to the charges, and been asked for compensation when the error was discovered.
The company's insurer paid out on the claims, but then sued Ein Dor.
Ein Dor was deemed responsible because "it did not conduct an inspection as to the purity of the variety in all the allotments it provided to the company." On top of the damages, the judge ordered the kibbutz to pay court fees of NIS 96,000 to the plaintiffs.
The judge did not absolve Milchin Brothers from blame, as a Milchin Brothers representative was present where the seeds were treated, and was shown to have not acted as he should have done when a problem arose.
