The ending of an era is coming on Thursday. One of the biggest names in the agriculture industry will cease to exist. Monsanto will officially become just another part of Bayer on June 7th.
All the approvals have been given by regulatory bodies all over the world. Bayer has the green light to finish their acquisition of Monsanto and expects to do so on Thursday.
Audio: World of Agriculture
It has been a little more than two years since Bayer announced its plans to acquire the agriculture giant for a cost of about $63 Billion dollars. The final integration of Monsanto into Bayer will be completed once the final divestments to BASF have been completed.
Werner Baumann, Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer AG says, ?The acquisition of Monsanto is a strategic milestone in strengthening our portfolio of leading businesses in health and nutrition. We will double the size of our agriculture business and create a leading innovation engine in agriculture, positioning us to better serve our customers and unlock the long-term growth potential in the sector.?
Opponents of the deal said the merger would reduce competition in the marketplace and be detrimental to producers and consumers. However, Liam Condon, Bayer Board Member and President of the Crop Science Division counters, ?The combination of the two businesses will allow us to deliver more innovation faster and provide solutions tailored to the needs of farmers around the world. Going forward, our teams in the labs and in the field will be able to take a much more holistic approach to innovation as we address the enormous challenges we face in agriculture.?
