Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84SENATE ANALYZES COMPETITION AMONG A CONSOLIDATING SEED INDUSTRY THE SENATE JUDICIARY Committee held a hearing Sept. 20, “Consolidation and Competition in the U.S. Seed and Agrochemical Industry,” during which representatives from the companies undergoing proposed mergers and acquisitions testified along with leaders from com- modity organizations. The hearing, led by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), sought to dive into the advantages, disadvantages and reasons behind the “tsunami” of merg- ers and acquisitions. Grassley said when he started farming in 1960, a bag of seed corn was $12 to $15, and today it’s around $300 a bag. He recognized the down- cycle of the current agricultural economy but expressed concern about market share and competition. The industry “is on the precipice of a major transformation,” Grassley said. “There are currently six companies. They all compete for market share, while working together through cross-licensing agreements.” Those six companies are in the process of becoming four: • In December 2015, Dow Chemical Company and DuPont announced that the two companies would merge (DowDuPont) and subse- quently spinoff three separate companies — an agriculture company, a material science company and a specialty products company. • In February 2016, Syngenta agreed to be acquired by China National Chemical Corporation (ChemChina) for $43 billion — the most ambi- tious foreign takeover attempt by a Chinese company to date. • Just last week (Sept. 14) Bayer and Monsanto announced a $66 billion deal in which the German-based Bayer would buyout the Midwestern biotech giant. Company respresentatives defend their move to merge and consolidate. Julie Deering 16 / SEEDWORLD.COM OCTOBER 2016