Syngenta’s Interaction Centre at Stein, Switzerland. (Syngenta.com)

ChemChina, Syngenta ready to offer EU remedies over merger

Florence | Reuters — Chinese state-owned chemical company ChemChina and Swiss pesticides and seeds group Syngenta are prepared to offer concessions to EU antitrust regulators to ease concerns over their US$43 billion deal, a person familiar with the matter said Friday. The companies will meet European Commission officials on Monday in a meeting called by


Comment: Closing the barn door after the fact

Sudden concern about mergers on the part of politicians is too little, too late

One of the oldest truisms agriculture offers is the simple, rock-solid advice that the time to close the barn door is before the cows get out. Closing the door afterwards, as everyone knows, is pointless because the cows are already long gone. Everyone, except of course, the U.S. Congress which, on Sept. 20, hosted a

Treated corn seed. (Syngenta.com)

U.S. farmer suits over Syngenta corn get class status

Reuters — A U.S. district court judge in Kansas this week said lawsuits brought by U.S. farmers against seed company Syngenta over sales of biotech corn seeds not approved for import by China can proceed as a class action, according to a court filing. Farmers from the largest U.S. corn-producing states sued the seed maker


(Dow.com)

Agricultural merger mania fuels fears among small seed sellers

Chicago | Reuters — The U.S. Justice Department is looking into concerns that global consolidation among major seed and agricultural chemical companies may squeeze supplies of the building blocks for widely used genetically modified seeds, a farm group told Reuters. The department has asked the American Soybean Association for details about how small and independent

Monsanto is dead. Now what?

The lightning rod for resentment won’t be there to kick around anymore

It seems Monsanto is finally out of its misery. Arguably the most detested company in the world, it will likely cease to exist with Bayer’s acquisition. Monsanto’s own attempt to acquire Swiss-based Syngenta not only failed, but also was received with extreme prejudice. But now with Bayer’s acquisition of the St. Louis-based company, Monsanto, or


(CropScience.Bayer.ca)

U.S. lawmakers skeptical of ag chemical, seed merger wave

Washington | Reuters — U.S. lawmakers expressed concern on Tuesday over a wave of mergers among companies that sell farmers their seeds, herbicides and insecticides, worrying that the deals could lead to higher prices and less innovation at a time of dropping farm incomes. Senator Richard Blumenthal, a Democrat from Connecticut, said the proposed mergers



Syngenta’s Interaction Centre at Stein, Switzerland. (Syngenta.com)

ChemChina extends tender offers for Syngenta

Zurich | Reuters — ChemChina on Tuesday extended by almost two months the deadline for Syngenta investors to tender their shares as the Chinese company seeks to complete a US$43 billion takeover of the Swiss pesticides and seeds group. Investors in Basel-based Syngenta now have until Nov. 8 to tender their shares unless this is

Syngenta researchers at Elm River are looking at ways for growers to boost the value of their soybean acres in Manitoba conditions.

Testing soybeans in local conditions

Researchers at Syngenta’s Elm River research farm are looking at ways Manitoba producers 
can optimize production methods to get the best value out of their soybean acres

As more and more western Canadian producers introduce soybeans into their rotation, there are a lot of questions that need to be answered about how to best make them fit. Nobody is exactly sure how to best streamline production and determine ideal planting conditions, according to one seed specialist. “There are a lot of factors