Monsanto was a leading company in the industry of agricultural biotechnology . Monsanto was known for producing the herbicide (chemical weed killer) Roundup, as well as insecticides (chemical insect killers) and genetically modified (GM) crop seeds.
The American chemist John Francis Queeny founded Monsanto in St. Louis, Missouri in 1901. The company originally made food additive products such as caffeine, vanillin, and the artificial sweetener saccharin. By the 1940’s, Monsanto was synthesizing (making) fertilizers and insecticides for farmers. In the late 1960’s, Monsanto also began to mass-produce tiny and efficient light sources called light-emitting diodes (LED’s), becoming the first company to do so.
In 1970, the American chemist John E. Franz synthesized the herbicide glyphosate while working at Monsanto. Within a few years, Monsanto had patented glyphosate and began marketing it under the brand name Roundup. Farmers praised the new herbicide for its effectiveness at killing many kinds of unwanted plants. Franz received multiple awards for his discovery. Roundup remains one of the most commonly used herbicides in the world.
In 1996, Monsanto developed a genetically modified version of a soybean that could resist the effects of Roundup. Monsanto marketed the modified seeds as Roundup Ready seeds, which became popular around the world. Farmers could plant a field with Roundup Ready seeds and immediately apply Roundup herbicide. Since only the Roundup resistant seeds could survive, the result was a field where only the desired crop grows. In addition to soybeans, Monsanto developed corn, cotton, wheat, and many other varieties of Roundup Ready seeds. As Monsanto’s products skyrocketed in popularity, many people became concerned about the potential risks of using glyphosate and genetically modified seeds on such a large scale.
Monsanto underwent many mergers and acquisitions with other companies. In 2016, the multinational chemical and pharmaceutical company Bayer made an offer to purchase Monsanto. Bayer completed the purchase and retired the name Monsanto in 2018.
