The Justice Department, which filed an antitrust suit to prevent Deere & Co. from buying Precision Planting, recently telephoned farmers in the Midwest to ask about the market dynamics for high-speed planters, says DTN. An Illinois farmer told DTN that he spent up to half-an-hour on topics such as when it is a better choice to buy a larger planter compared to a higher operating speed for a smaller planter, and how price-sensitive are farmers.
Deere, the largest farm equipment maker in the world, and Precision Planting, owned by Monsanto, dominate sales of high-speed seed planters, together logging 86 percent of sales, says the Justice Department. The planters allow accurate placement of seeds while running up to 10 mph, twice the normal speed for planting. Deere says its purchase of Precision Planting will not reduce competition for planter sales.
The government began calling farmers in late September, roughly a month after filing suit in federal court in Chicago, says DTN, based on its interviews and Twitter traffic among farmers. Matt Foes, an Illinois farmer, said, “There are so many more aspects of a planter that have to be considered beyond how fast you drive.”