This is the definitive history of Monsanto, a St. Louis chemical firm that became the world's largest genetically engineered seed enterprise. Monsanto merged with German pharma-biotech giant Bayer in 2018 but its Roundup Ready seeds, introduced twenty-five years ago, are still reshaping the farms that feed us. Incorporating global fieldwork, interviews with company employees, and untapped corporate and government records, award-winning historian Bartow J. Elmore traces Monsanto's astounding evolution from a scrappy chemical startup to a global agrobusiness powerhouse.
Capitalising on deals with customers like Coca-Cola, General Electric and especially the US government, Monsanto used seed money derived from toxic products-including PCBs and Agent Orange-to build an agricultural empire, promising endless bounty through its genetically engineered technology. As new data emerges about its blockbuster Roundup system, and as Bayer faces a tide of lawsuits over Monsanto products past and present, Elmore's urgent history takes a penetrating look at the company's past.
- ISBN10 1324002042
- ISBN13 9781324002048
- Publish Date 12 November 2021
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Imprint WW Norton & Co
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 400
- Language English