Monsanto has announced an agreement to acquire De Ruiter Seeds.

The deal will expand US-based Monsanto’s vegetable-seed portfolio in the protected crops sector.

The purchase price for the Dutch holding company De Ruiter Seeds Group that owns and operates De Ruiter Seeds is €546 million or greater than $800m depending on currency exchange rates, less net debt. “De Ruiter Seeds is a leading provider of high-quality products to growers within the protected-culture vegetable seed market,” said Terry Crews, chief financial officer of Monsanto and chief executive officer of Seminis, the vegetable seeds division of Monsanto. “When combined with the

operational improvements we've made in our Seminis business and the growth opportunity of our marker-assisted breeding platform, this acquisition represents an opportunity to not only transform, but further grow our vegetable seed business in a high-value, fast-growing segment of the market.”

Monsanto and De Ruiter Seeds believe the acquisition will create a number of benefits for both companies. Monsanto's established and growing research in marker-assisted breeding is expected to offer an immediate jump-start for De Ruiter Seeds breeders. The combination of De Ruiter Seeds’s pool of genetics and its operating experience within the protected-culture segment is expected to enhance the service Monsanto offers to the vegetable seed market. Both companies are therefore expected to offer better products to growers and do so faster than either company could have done on its own.

On completion of the transaction, Monsanto's vegetable seed business will serve its customers through three dedicated platforms including for protected crops, open field and regional vegetable seed businesses. The De Ruiter Seeds business will serve the protected vegetable seed market,

Seminis will serve the open-field vegetable seed market, and the International Seed Group, Inc. (ISG) will serve customers of regional seed businesses.

The three-pronged approach is expected to enable Monsanto's vegetable seed businesses to focus on serving the needs of growers and their retail distribution customers across these segments. To support these segments, each business will benefit from Monsanto's R&D, advanced breeding techniques, global germplasm network and IT.

Biense Visser, the president and chief executive officer of De Ruiter Seeds, will continue to lead the De Ruiter Seeds business which will in turn Report into Kerry Preete who leads Monsanto’s vegetable seed businesses.

Monsanto intends to finance the acquisition with cash, but no timeframe has been announced as the proposed acquisition is subject to approval by the appropriate regulatory authorities.

Topics