Monsanto Buying Delta and Pine

NEW YORK - Aug 16/06 - SNS -- Monsanto Company will pay Delta and Pine Land Company shareholders U.S. $42 per share or around U.S. $1.5 billion cash for the company. The deal is subject to regulatory approval in the United States.

Delta and Pine Land Company is a leader in the cotton seed industry and currently operates the largest and longest running private cotton seed breeding program in the world. The company's extensive plant breeding programs, including its diverse base of international germplasm, has enabled the company to develop and deliver improved cotton varieties for their farmer customers for more than 90 years.

In recent years, Delta and Pine Land Company has worked to expand its breeding efforts through numerous facilities across the United States and around the world in an attempt to better serve its farmer customers.

Upon completion of the acquisition, management of both companies believe the proposed combination creates the opportunity to strengthen both the domestic and international cotton seed business by enhancing penetration of second-generation biotech trait offerings and continuing to invest in breeding to give cotton farmers who plant Delta and Pine Land's cotton seed varieties more choices.