Hurrying to lock up agbiotech

Monsanto Co. has been increasingly active during the past two years in consolidating its position in agricultural biotechnology, through corporate acquisitions and alliances, as well as patent litigation.

The basis for these moves is Monsanto's belief, as stated in its 1995 annual report, that biotech will fundamentally change the nature of the agricultural enterprise in ways that are as yet unknown. At the same time, the company sees an agricultural market responding to powerful forces: expanding demand for food and fiber as world population grows and developing nations improve their diets; cost pressures accelerated by freer trade and reduced government subsidies; environmental pressure to reduce polluting and wasteful practices; and dislocations resulting from the new technology itself...