(Syngenta.com)

Syngenta ready to play role in sector shake-up

Frankfurt | Reuters — Syngenta and other major seeds and crop chemicals companies are intensively discussing tie-ups, the Financial Times quoted the Swiss firm’s chairman as saying Wednesday, adding to a chorus of voices predicting a sector shake-up. Conversations among the leading players in the industry are “extremely active,” the newspaper quoted Michel Demare as

(Dave Bedard photo)

Syngenta still among options for Monsanto takeover bids

St. Louis | Reuters — Monsanto executives are discussing whether the world’s largest seed company should acquire agrochemical rivals, including top pesticide maker Syngenta, Monsanto president Brett Begemann said Tuesday. “Everybody’s talking now. There’s multiple ways things can occur,” he said. Monsanto abandoned a $45 billion bid for Syngenta in August (all figures US$). Begemann


(Photo courtesy DuPont Argentina)

DuPont in talks with rivals about agribusiness

Reuters — DuPont is talking to rivals about its agriculture business, interim CEO Edward Breen said Tuesday, less than a week after Dow Chemical announced a review of its farm chemicals and seeds unit. Falling crop prices and rising fertilizer output have triggered talk of consolidation among farm-focused companies. DuPont has been touted as a

(Dow.com)

Dow reviews options for farm chemical/seeds unit

Reuters — Dow Chemical said it would “review all options” for its farm chemicals and seeds unit, which has reported falling sales for nearly a year, and suggested that it might buy Corning’s stake in a silicon joint venture. Dow is also selling its stake in a Kuwaiti JV that produces a chemical used in


Monsanto, whose Canadian operations are headquartered in Winnipeg, has announced plans to cut over 11 per cent of its regular workforce.

Monsanto Canada doesn’t know yet how many Canadian jobs will be cut

Monsanto is cutting 2,600 jobs worldwide as it restructures to cut costs and boost net earnings

It’s unknown how many of the 2,600 employees Monsanto plans to cut globally over the next two years will be in Canada, but farmers and retailers shouldn’t notice much change, says Trish Jordan, Monsanto Canada’s director of public and industry affairs. “I would say in terms of our working relationship and engagement with our farm




Chinese state media kick into high gear to ease GMO food fears

China’s state media are working overtime to persuade the public that genetically modified food is safe, apparently softening up the population for a policy switch to allow the sale of such food to ensure its 1.35 billion people have enough to eat. In the past 30 years, China’s urban population has jumped to about 700


A corn farmer holds corncobs during a protest in Mexico City January 2013. Farmers protested against the growing of transgenic or genetically modified corn, as it is one of the primary food staples of Mexico and Central America.  
Photo: REUTERS/Bernardo Montoya

Past and future collide as Mexico fights over GMO corn

After pioneering the cultivation of corn thousands of years ago, Mexico must overcome the weight of history to give the go-ahead to allow genetically modified strains into its fields. Religion, culture and science are competing for primacy in the debate on how acceptable corn produced by genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is in a country where

file photo

Corn good for Manitoba’s economy

Manitoba’s corn industry punches above its weight when contributing to the provincial and national economy, according to a study prepared for Informa Economics for the Manitoba Corn Growers Association (MCGA). The consulting company estimates Manitoba corn production provided nearly $117 million in added value to the provincial economy in 2012 based on direct and indirect