Bayer hires Brunswick, Sard Verbinnen, CNC, Finsbury and Hering Schupperner as PR advisers on Monsanto bid
Bayer [ETR:BAYN] has hired the public relations companies Brunswick, Sard Verbinnen, CNC, Finsbury and Hering Schuppener to work on its USD 62bn (EUR 81.58bn) takeover bid for Monsanto [NYSE:MON], the Financial Times reported.
The newspaper did not cite a source for the information, but quoted Bayer chief executive Werner Baumann, who said the German pharmaceuticals and chemicals group is working on “reputational measures” and that the company is working with agencies to address issues of reputation management and communications.
Hering Schuppener and Finsbury are advising Bayer specifically on reputational issues, the item said.
Bayer announced on 23 May that it had approached Monsanto, a St Louis, Missouri-based crop science company, about a takeover offer at USD 122 per share. Monsanto on 24 May said it had rejected the offer as incomplete and financially inadequate, but added that it was open to further talks to explore whether a deal was possible.
The Financial Times report noted that some advocacy groups, including Campact, are against the proposed deal. Campact has urged supporters to petition against the proposed tie-up, the item said, adding that a petition has gained 92,900 signatures.
Monsanto’s business of genetically modified (GM) seeds has proved controversial, as has its association with the chemical glyphosate, which is used in the weed killer Roundup. The World Health Organisation has said Roundup is probably carcinogenic, the item noted.
The European Union is considering whether to grant glyphosate a renewed licence and several large EU members are opposed to renewing the licence, the article added.
Bayer’s head of crop science strategy, Mathias Kremer, said Europe is the only region in which genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are controversial, adding that GMOs are seen as either positive or neutral worldwide.
Baumann concedes that shareholders have informed him of concerns about the reputational risk that could come with a takeover of Monsanto, the article said.
Separately, The Times reported that the US National Farmers Union has asked the US Department of Justice to give carefully and critically review any deals including the proposed tie-up between Bayer and Monsanto that would lead to less competition in the agricultural sector. The newspaper quoted the NFU, which said the agricultural sector is already “heavily concentrated.”
Financial Times, The Times (London)