History has taught us that the collective memory of the general public is a short one–and that is exactly what Bayer is hoping for.  After recently acquiring Monsanto in a $60 billion dollar all-cash deal, Big Pharma-Pesticide corp Bayer just announced they are dumping the politically-tainted “Monsanto” name–but the chemicals, including those involved in creating potentially harmful pesticides and genetically modified food seeds, are staying on.

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Monsanto No More: Agri-Chemical Giant’s Name Dropped In Bayer Acquisition

NPR

These days Monsanto is shorthand for, as NPR’s Dan Charles has put it, “lots of things that some people love to hate”: Genetically modified crops, which Monsanto invented. Seed patents, which Monsanto has fought to defend. Herbicides such as Monsanto’s Roundup, which protesters have sharply criticized for its possible health risks. Big agriculture in general, of which Monsanto was the reviled figurehead.

And soon Monsanto will be no more.

Bayer, the German pharmaceutical giant and pesticide powerhouse, announced in 2016 it would be buying Monsanto in an all-cash deal for more than $60 billion.

Now, as the merger approaches, Bayer has confirmed what many suspected: In the merger, the politically charged name “Monsanto” will be disappearing.

The combined company will be known simply as Bayer, while product names will remain the same.

The move is not exactly a surprise — it makes sense that Bayer might want to weed out some of the intense negative associations associated with the Monsanto brand. In a way, it’s an indication of how successful anti-Monsanto protesters have been in shaping public perception.

In the company’s latest statement, Bayer implicitly acknowledged how hostile debates over genetically modified crops and other agricultural products have become…

Read more here

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