The company’s first product was the artificial sweetener saccharine, which it sold to Coca-Cola.
When the trade war with Germany nearly bankrupted Monsanto ,Queeny decided to diversify into the food additive. By 1916, Monsanto catalog included such well-known products as caffeine and Aspirin.
John Queeny passed on the business to his son Edgar Monsanto Queeny in 1928 and he turned to b a leader of exceptional quality.
However, at the start of World War I company leaders realized the growth opportunists in the industrial chemicals industry.
By 1964, Monsanto was producing diverse products as petroleum, fibers and packaging. A couple of years later, Monsanto created its first Roundup herbicide.
In 1981, Monsanto leaders determined that biotechnology would be the company’s new strategic focus, a dynamic change for the company.
In 1995, the company sold off the company’s chemical branches and bought seed companies, making Monsanto the largest seed company in the world.
By 2010, 90% of the world’s genetically modified seeds are sold by Monsanto or by companies that use Monsanto genes.
Monsanto Company
