This Mega-Merger Could Give 3 Countries Control Much World Agriculture

"An agricultural mega-merger is about to ordain China as a new global leader in genetically-modified food.

First floated in 2016, a $43 billion deal that would merge Chinese state-owned agriculture company, ChemChina, and Swiss-owned seed company, Syngenta, promises to recast the world’s second largest economy as a biotech titan. The proposed deal is just one of three potential farm mergers that, if approved by regulators, will create the biggest farm-business oligopoly in world history and concentrate agricultural power to three countries: the US, Germany, and China.

The ChemChina-Syngenta merger is on the cusp of becoming official as regulators in the European Union and the United States this month gave nods of approval. (Mergers between Bayer and Monsanto, and DuPont with Dow Chemical, are also being reviewed by regulators.)"

Chase Purdy reports for Quartz April 19, 2017.