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MONSANTO

Board backs ChemChina bid to buy Syngenta

UPDATED: China National Chemical Corp on Wednesday offered to buy Syngenta for $43 billion, the Swiss pesticide giant said in a statement, in what would be the biggest-ever overseas acquisition by a Chinese firm.

Published: 3 February 2016 08:17 CET
Board backs ChemChina bid to buy Syngenta
Photo: AFP

Syngenta's board recommended the offer of $465 a share, plus a special dividend, to its shareholders, saying “the proposed transaction respects the interests of all stakeholders”.
   
It said the deal “will enable further expansion of Syngenta's presence in emerging markets and notably in China.”
   
The deal outstrips China Unicom Hong Kong Ltd's purchase of China Netcom Group Corp for $28 billion in 2008, according to data from Bloomberg.
   
An analyst at Germany's Baader Bank said prior to the announcement that a deal would be welcomed by investors “because it is entirely in cash”.

However, “it could pose political problems,” he said.
   
Last month, ChemChina said it would buy Germany's KraussMaffei Group, which makes machinery for producing plastics and rubber, for €925 million ($1 billion).  

The state giant also in January announced it had bought a 12 percent stake in Geneva-based energy and commodities trader Mercuria in a bid to expand its portfolio.

Last year it announced the takeover of Italian tyre maker Pirelli, renowned for its Formula One equipment and racy calendars, in a deal valued at 7.4 billion euros.

“Their acquisition strategy is not 'catching up' anymore,” said Tyler Rooker, an assistant professor at the University of Nottingham.

“They're acquiring assets that add to their competitiveness as global multinationals.”

Syngenta said its existing management will continue to run the company, headquartered in Basel.
   
A ten-member board of directors will be chaired by Ren Jianxin, Chairman of ChemChina, and will include four of the existing Syngenta Board members, it said.
   
Michel Demare, Chairman of Syngenta, said: “In making this offer, ChemChina is recognizing the quality and potential of Syngenta's business.
   
“This includes industry-leading R&D and manufacturing and the quality of our people worldwide,” Demare said.

“The transaction minimizes operational disruption; it is focused on growth globally, specifically in China and other emerging markets, and enables long-term investment in innovation,” he said.
   
“Syngenta will remain Syngenta and will continue to be headquartered in Switzerland, reflecting this country's attractiveness as a corporate location.”

Syngenta last year fended off takeover bids from US-based Monsanto.

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MONSANTO

French police to probe alleged Monsanto lists on opinion-makers

France has opened a preliminary enquiry into allegations that US pesticides maker Monsanto had information illegally collected on the views and pliability of hundreds of high-profile figures and media outlets.

Published: 11 May 2019 08:49 CEST
French police to probe alleged Monsanto lists on opinion-makers
Activists from the 'Attac' protest group scale the offices of Bayer -which recently acquired Monsanto- in La Garenne Colombes near the financial district of La Defence on the outskirts of Paris. Photo
Paris judicial police will carry out the probe following a complaint by the daily Le Monde and one of its journalists, whose names appear on the list, the Paris prosecutor's office said.
 
Two anti-pesticide NGOs — Foodwatch and Generations Futures — are also preparing to lodge legal complaints over the alleged lists.
 
The investigators will look into the possible “collection of personal information by fraudulent, unfair or illicit means”.
   
US giant Monsanto allegedly had public relations agency FleishmanHillard draw up the files on the opinions of the targeted people and media bodies on the controversial weedkiller glyphosate and on genetically modified crops as 
well as their propensity to be influenced in their opinions.
 
 
Figuring on the list are politicians, scientists and journalists — including four from AFP (Agence France-Presse). Information was collected on their views on pesticides and on Monsanto as well as their leisure pursuits, addresses and phone numbers, according to the France 2 public television channel.
   
Some of the names were listed under categories such as “priority targets” and “potential allies to recruit”, according to reports.
   
France's former environment minister Segolene Royal, whose name was said to appear on the lists, said the allegation “says a lot about the methods of lobbyists… they carry out spying, infiltration, seek to influence, sometimes financially I imagine”, adding that other companies are likely to indulge in similar practices.
   
A spokesman for FleishmanHillard told AFP: “FleishmanHillard and our staff are committed to compliance with applicable laws and we are committed to the highest standards of ethical conduct. 
   
“We continue to take that responsibility very seriously and will carefully examine the questions raised by certain media outlets about the lists of stakeholders that included publicly available information.”
   
Glyphosate developer Monsanto was convicted in the United States in 2018 and 2019 of not taking necessary steps to warn of the potential risks of Roundup — their weedkiller containing the chemical, which two California juries found caused cancer in two users.
   
German pharmaceutical firm Bayer, which bought Monsanto last year, announced last month that over 13,000 lawsuits related to the weedkiller have been launched in the US. 
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