Stoneville Pedigreed Seed Company president Thomas F. "Bud" Hughes has confirmed the Monsanto announcement that Stoneville, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Monsanto, will be sold through an auction process to begin in early 1999. Monsanto spokesman Robert Fraley noted that "All interested parties are welcome," and, "The process will be market-driven, and Monsanto will work to ensure a quick and efficient transition to the new parent company for Stoneville." Fraley predicted that "Stoneville will remain competitive in the seed and biotech sectors under the new parent."

"No one familiar with the cotton industry is surprised to learn that we are for sale," Hughes said, referring to widespread speculation that Monsanto would be required by the U.S. Justice Department to divest itself of Stoneville before the Department would approve its planned acquisition of Delta and Pine Land Company. "Although Monsanto is a fine company, we all understand the reasons for this action, which we believe will ultimately be good for Stoneville and for cotton growers," he said.

Industry analysts expect bidding to be lively for Memphis-based Stoneville. The company markets two of the three top selling cotton seed varieties in the U.S., and is the only seed company licensed to sell varieties with the popular BXN® weed control system. Stoneville is poised to introduce several new Bollgard®, Roundup® Ready and Bollgard/Roundup Ready varieties in 1999. These assets, combined with a Texas subsidiary that will create a huge new customer base and a share of the U.S. cotton seed market that has climbed steadily in recent years, promise to make Stoneville a hot property.

"We are excited about the possibilities of what this sale could mean and are eager to get it behind us so we can continue to make Stoneville an even better company and a better competitor," Hughes concluded.

Stoneville Pedigreed Seed Company is the second largest breeder, producer and marketer of cotton planting seeds in the United States, with seed production facilities in Arizona, Mississippi and Texas and research and development sites in Arizona, California, Georgia, Mississippi, Texas and South Africa. Stoneville has been breeding cotton since 1922 and is respected worldwide for its contributions to the cotton industry, including introduction of the world's first genetically engineered cotton seed.

Bollgard and Roundup are registered trademarks of Monsanto.
BXN is a registered trademark of Rhone Poulenc Ag Company.

Company news release
N2200