14 Sep 2011The proposed transaction between South Africa’s Pannar Seed and US-based Pioneer Hi-Bred International was necessary if Pannar Seed was to reverse its declining competitive position in the crucial area of maize breeding, Pannar Seed deputy chairman Michael Yeadon told Business Report yesterday.
Yeadon said that the 53-year old family-run company had elected to sell a stake to Pioneer in order to ensure that it would have access to the technology and scale needed to remain at the forefront of the rapidly changing maize-breeding industry.
In a statement issued to the Competition Tribunal, lawyers acting for Pannar noted that due to its smaller scale – relative to powerful global companies: “Pannar cannot justify and make the investments in research and development that are necessary in today’s technologically sophisticated environment, where access to advanced breeding technologies is essential to remain competitive.”
http://www.iol.co.za/business/business-news/business-depends-on-deal-pannar-seed-1.1136952
