Two of the largest seed and agricultural chemical companies of the world, Bayer and Monsanto, will combine in a deal valued at $66 billion. Monsanto chief executive Hugh Grant said the merger, in which Bayer buys Monsanto for cash, will result in “an innovation engine that pairs Bayer’s crop protection portfolio with our world-class seeds and traits and digital agriculture tools to help growers overcome the obstacles of tomorrow.”
The combined Bayer-Monsanto would be the world’s largest seed and agricultural company, said NPR.
The merger was the latest in a wave of consolidation in the sector. The proposed merger of Dow and DuPont is under antitrust review in the United States and Europe. Government-owned ChemChina is acquiring Syngenta, based in Switzerland.
Farmers worry they will face higher prices and fewer choices if the mergers are approved, said Senate Judiciary chairman Charles Grassley, adding, “federal regulators must be ever-vigilant to ensure a robust competitive environment in this important sector.” The Judiciary Committee is scheduled to review agricultural consolidation at a hearing on Tuesday.
Roger Johnson, president of the National Farmers Union, said mega-mergers “cannot be the standard for agriculture … We will continue to express concern that these mega-deals are being made to benefit the corporate boardrooms at the expense of family farmers, ranchers, consumers and rural economies.” The largest U.S. farm group, the American Farm Bureau Federation, “believes the Department of Justice should undertake a close review of the overall business climate that has encouraged these combinations, rather they evaluating them in isolation, said AFBF chief economist Bob Young.
Monsanto is the world’s largest seed company and developer of GMO crops. It has 20,000 employees compared to Bayer’s 117,000. In a joint announcement, the companies said the overall crop-sciences headquarters will be in Monheim, Germany, along with the global headquarters for crop protection products. St Louis, the home to Monsanto, would become the headquarters for the global “seeds and traits” wing and the North American commercial headquarters.
The companies said the merger will mean accelerated research on seeds and ag chemicals and bring “significant and lasting benefits for farmers; from improved sourcing and increased convenience to higher yield, better environmental protection and sustainability.”