Mainstream media is a buzz today over Bayer and Monsanto’s recent meeting with President-Elect Donald Trump where the duo promised jobs and further investment in the U.S.
Some analysts are skeptical of how much of this information is actually new. Let’s hear straight from the horse’s mouth on this one, as the companies issued a joint statement on the meeting:
Werner Baumann, Bayer CEO, and Hugh Grant, Monsanto Chairman and CEO, had a very productive meeting last week with President-Elect Trump and his team to share their view on the future of the agriculture industry and its need for innovation. The driving force behind the Bayer-Monsanto combination is increasing and accelerating innovation to help growers around the world address challenges like climate change and food security. This becomes increasingly important as we all work together to feed a growing population in a sustainable way.
The United States is a global leader in agriculture, and the combination of Bayer-Monsanto will underscore that role and ensure the United States retains a pre-eminent position as the anchor of the industry. The combined company expects to spend approximately $16 billion for R&D in agriculture over the next six years with at least half of this investment made in the United States. This is an investment in innovation and people that will create several thousand new high-tech, well-paying jobs after integration is complete, jobs that will keep America at the forefront of agricultural innovation and that serve U.S. farmers by delivering better products and services faster.
More specifically, this is an investment in the U.S. heartland with global seeds and traits research and development for the combined company being headquartered in St. Louis, along with its agriculture North American commercial headquarters and additional research and commercial locations throughout the United States. These high-tech jobs will drive future innovation in agriculture: geneticists, roboticists, satellite imagery specialists, engineers, data scientists, advanced breeders, and statisticians.
