In 2015, farmers had six companies to choose from to purchase their seeds and pesticides. But, following mergers, notably Bayer’s purchase of Monsanto in 2018, farmers had fewer choices.
By 2020, just four companies controlled the markets for important cash crops of corn, soybeans and cotton. And two international conglomerates, Bayer and Corteva, own the majority of the seed markets for those commodities.
The industry’s mergers received antitrust attention, but the federal government ultimately approved them.
