The Department of Justice responded yesterday to comments from National Family Farm Coalition and others concerned with antitrust, environmental, human health, and other issues raised by the merger of agribusiness giants Bayer and Monsanto. NFFC has issued this response:

The Department of Justice’s dismissal of numerous concerns about the merger of agribusiness giants Bayer and Monsanto demonstrates, once again, how out of touch the Trump Administration is with family farmers. The divestitures in the deal are wholly insufficient to restore the fair market competition that farmers desperately need, while the deal will make it increasingly difficult for farmers to care for their land and water sustainably. This merger is no more a “victory for American farmers” than the new status quo farm bill that does nothing to address free-falling farm prices; trade wars and their insufficient farmer assistance; or the pending agribusiness mergers that will tighten the marketplace even further for hard-working US family farmers and the rural communities depending on them.