Bayer and Monsanto Announce Merger Deal

bayer-monsanto-deal

hugh-grant-wernerIn a $66 billion deal, the CEO’s of Bayer and Monsanto announced a definitive merger agreement between the two companies has been signed. Bayer will acquire Monsanto for $128 per share in the all-cash transaction approved by the boards of both companies. Werner Baumann of Bayer AG said the merger is good for consumers as the world population increases dramatically.

“It is also good for our growers. Because they have better choices to increase yields in a sustainable way. Shareholders of both companies benefit from this transaction. Because this is about value creation and growth. And our employees will be part of a leading innovation engine for the next generation of farming. For Bayer, this step will significantly strengthen our position as a leading life science company in the world.”

Hugh Grant of Monsanto (left) said the move is important as agriculture enters a new era.

“One in which growers are demanding new solutions and technologies to be more profitable and to be even more sustainable. The vision for this combination was born out of that desire to help farmers grow more with less. Together with Bayer, we are going to be able to offer growers even better solutions, faster. This combination will deliver just that, an innovation engine that pairs Bayer’s crop protection portfolio with our world-class seeds and traits and our Climate Corporation platform to help growers overcome the obstacles of tomorrow.”

Now the merger of the German company Bayer and St. Louis based Monsanto goes under the scrutiny of regulators. Others will scrutinize too. American Soybean Association President Richard Wilkins said in a statement, “ASA intends to closely analyze the potential impacts of this proposed merger on soybean farmers to provide comments to the companies and U.S. regulatory authorities that must approve any acquisition, including the Justice Department.”

And from Chip Bowling, president of the National Corn Growers Association, “We are committed to protecting the best interests of our nation’s corn farmers. Our primary concern with respect to any merger is how it may affect input costs, particularly given the current farm economy. With respect to a previously announced merger, we completed a thorough analysis that informed the comments and information we provided to the US Department of Justice during their investigation into the merger. We would anticipate following a similar path with respect to this merger so that we can truly understand the merger’s impact on agricultural research, innovation, and competitive pricing of farm inputs.”

Recommended Posts

Loading...