EU Commission: Bayer-Monsanto Merger Can’t ‘Impair’ Competition

Posted by Matt Hopkins|14 February 2018

The European Union needs to ensure the merger between agrochemical giants Bayer and Monsanto doesn’t “impair” competition. In an interview with Germany’s Rheinische Post, EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Verstager said: “it is our task to ensure that farmers still have a choice over seeds, pesticides, fungicides, and insecticides even after the merger.”

Bayer’s US $63.5 billion takeover of Monsanto was announced in 2016. If the Commission gives a positive antitrust verdict in April, Bayer will become the world’s largest seeds and pesticides company.

On Dec. 15 the EU Commission issued a formal objection to the merger. Although their arguments were not made public, the complaint sparked hope for some who oppose the merger. However last year the Commission cleared two similarly controversial mergers in the agrochemical industry: Dow’s tie-up with DuPont and ChemChina’s purchase of Syngenta.