Groups representing farmers and consumers in the United States have declared their opposition to Monsanto’s proposed takeover of Swiss competitor Syngenta.

Talking to news agency Reuters, US National Farmers Union representative Roger Johnson promised the union would "aggressively oppose" any merger and expressed concern that an amalgamation of the major agribusinesses would not work out in farmers’ interests. The union has joined in a loose coalition with other NGOs sceptical of the planned acquisition, which plans to present its objections to the US government if Syngenta accepts an offer from Monsanto.

In the EU, environment groups including Greenpeace have already stated their opposition to the proposed takeover, arguing that a more concentrated market would further reduce agricultural biodiversity and potentially ramp up use of agricultural chemicals.

The Swiss company has been considerably cooler than its competitor in its public statements on the proposal and has turned down three offers from Missouri-based Monsanto in the past year. Monsanto confirmed last week that there have been no new negotiations between the two companies.  

Monsanto is the world’s largest agricultural seed company and and Syngenta the largest pesticide manufacturer. Basel-based Syngenta has cited antitrust concerns as a major reason for turning down Monsanto’s unsolicited offers.

The US NFU formally stated its objection to the merger back in June. President Roger Johnson noted that there has been a massive concentration of economic power in the agriculture sector over the past 30 years and said such a merger would be another step in the same direction. The new entity created by the proposed merger would dwarf other agribusinesses and eliminate a competitor in the marketplace, Johnson said, potentially resulting in an increase in price for seeds and other inputs for farmers.

Johnson said, “As it stands today, the seed sector is dominated by the ‘big six’, and losing one of those would significantly reduce choice and further concentrate power. [US] NFU has a proud history of working to maintain competitive market places for farmers and will continue to do so going forward”.

Monsanto has said that farmers will remain its "No 1. priority" if a merger goes ahead.