Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
September 19, 2016

The recent announcement of a merger agreement between Bayer and Monsanto is a cause of serious concern to Canada’s canola farmers. The merger would combine two leading players in Canada’s agriculture industry, significantly reducing competition and consolidating market share in the canola seed, trait and crop protection business.

Canola is an extremely important crop to the long-term economic and environmental sustainability of 43,000 Canadian grain farms. Canola farmers are especially concerned about the effect of the merger on the offerings that will be available to them in the future. A reduction in competition could potentially increase crop input prices, curtail product choice and diminish the incentive for future innovation in canola seed and chemistry.

The Competition Act and its enforcement agency, the Competition Bureau, have established review procedures for determining the impact that proposed corporate mergers will have on competition in a sector of the economy. The regulator has the power to impose actions, conditions or require divestitures in a merger agreement to ensure competition is not substantially lessened.

Associations representing canola farmers at provincial and national levels, call for a timely and rigorous review by the regulator of the merger’s impact on competition in the canola sector in general, and more specifically at the farm gate. The associations will work with the regulator to ensure canola farmers’ concerns are voiced and that the impact of the merger on canola farmers is fully understood.