How important are GM crops to Monsanto?
Monsanto’s current financial situation will make it fight all the harder to get GM crops commercialised worldwide in order to make a return on its huge research and development budget, which totalled $560 million in 2001.61 Monsanto is becoming increasingly dependent on GM crops. Monsanto’s key product RoundUp has gone off-patent, and therefore Monsanto’s share of the glyphosate market has declined, with rivals Syngenta picking up 7-10 per cent of the glyphosate market by the end of 2002 according to Monsanto Chief Operating Officer, Hugh Grant.62 RoundUp Ready crops help to ensure a continuing market for Monsanto’s RoundUp as opposed to generic formulations of glyphosate. Hugh Grant and Chairman Frank AtLee have said that this year (2003), they expect that sales of seeds and genetically modified trait licences will surpass sales of Roundup which have supported the company for years.63 Monsanto has been repeatedly spun off so that the company is now dependent on a limited range of agri
