Bayer will invest in the development of alternative herbicides
Through a statement the company announced this measure, following the sanctions imposed by the US. for the potential carcinogenic effects of the Roundup herbicide
Bayer chemical and pharmaceutical group will invest 5,000 million euros in the development of alternative herbicides that are not based on glyphosate, as announced in a statement.
The company has made this decision after receiving three convictions in the United States for the potential carcinogenic effects of the herbicide RoundUp, a product based on glyphosate developed and originally manufactured by Monsanto. According to the latest data provided by Bayer, the company faces more than 13,400 claims in the United States for that product.
Until now, Bayer had defended its product after each sentence, stating that it was not proven to be carcinogenic. Since 2017, the firm has disseminated a total of 107 studies conducted internally on glyphosate.
“We are making good progress in the integration of the acquired agricultural business and now we are going to start implementing a series of measures to improve transparency and sustainability“, underlined Bayer CEO, Werner Baumann. These measures are aimed at solving the concerns that Bayer “has heard” about its role in agriculture in the last 12 months.
The German group acquired Monsanto in June 2018 for a total of 55,913 million euros. Since the closing of the acquisition of the US firm, the share price of Bayer accumulates a decline of 41.9% in the Stock Exchange. The multinational of Leverkusen decided to suppress the Monsanto brand after completing the biggest purchase of its more than 150 years of history, although it kept the names of the products incorporated into the Bayer catalog.
Despite the decision to invest in alternative herbicides, the chemical group has ensured that glyphosate “will continue to play an important role in agriculture and Bayer’s portfolio“.
K. Tovar
Source: 20minutos.es
