Monsanto Plans Pivot, Will Focus Business on Big Data

[Judi Lynn]

Monsanto Plans Pivot, Will Focus Business on Big Data
Published 24 September 2015

Monsanto, best known for its damaging product Roundup and genetically-modified seeds, now also wants to focus on big data services.


The Monsanto corporation, best known for its chemicals, seeds and genetic traits operations, appears to be planning a major change in the focus of its business with executives seeking to re-position the company as a business built on data science and services, Chief Technology Officer Robert T. Fraley told Reuters in an interview.

“We transformed from an industrial chemical company to a biotech company, then to a seeds company,” Fraley said. “Now, we’re transforming again.”

Top executives have reportedly already briefed major shareholders ahead of a wider presentation to investors in November. The company recently abandoned an effort to buy Syngenta, a company that also is focused on agrochemicals and seeds.

More:
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Monsanto-Plans-Pivot-Will-Focus-Business-on-Big-Data-20150924-0017.html

[enough]

1. Just in time for the flood of lawsuits coming in the next few years. (nt)

[RiverLover]

2. That's gottaa be it. This is astounding news, really.

From poisoning us to tracking us. I guess its a good thing. Weird, but overall very good news.

[progressoid]

3. The data is agriculture related.

Monsanto is seeking to provide services, software and hardware tools that use data to help farmers boost their crop yields by understanding what is happening with their fields – including catching shifts in soil chemistry, being more precise with their seed choices and knowing how they should apply pesticides in various conditions.

But the agricultural-data field is crowded, Monsanto’s initial moves into the sector have had spotty results and the shifting narrative is a sharp departure from the vision Monsanto described just weeks ago, as it bid for Syngenta. That vision was of a future based on agricultural chemicals and high-tech seeds.
http://reut.rs/1L7stOB

[Nihil]

4. ... so, if you control the data available, your products will receive less criticism ...

Totally understandable expansion from their perspective and one that they
will leverage in order to drown out the negatives associated with the company
and their products.

[RiverLover]

5. Thanks. 'Big data' has a whole different meaning in my world.

That makes much more sense. haha Now its not so weird, but much more frightening.