Competition Bureau reaches consent agreement with Bayer in its proposed acquisition of Monsanto
OTTAWA - The Competition Bureau announced today that it has reached an agreement with Bayer AG (Bayer) related to its proposed acquisition of Monsanto Company (Monsanto). This agreement addresses the Commissioner of Competition's concerns that the proposed transaction would have significantly harmed competition and innovation in Canada's agricultural sector.
Following an extensive review, the Bureau concluded that the proposed acquisition would likely substantially lessen and prevent competition in Canada with respect to the supply of canola seeds and traits, soybean seeds and traits, seed treatments that protect crops against nematodes, and carrot seeds.
To address those concerns, the agreement requires Bayer to sell its canola seed and traits business, soybean seed and traits business, carrot seed business, nematode seed treatment business, glufosinate-ammonium herbicide business, LibertyLink herbicide tolerance technology, assets related to the Centurion herbicide, and digital farming business in Canada. Bayer has proposed BASF SE as the buyer of the assets under the agreement. The Bureau is actively reviewing the suitability of BASF as the proposed buyer of these assets.