Visualizing Consolidation in the Global Seed Industry 1996–2008 英文参考文献.docVIP

Sustainability 2009, 1, 1266-1287; doi:10.3390/su1041266 OPEN ACCESS sustainability ISSN 2071-1050 /journal/sustainability Article Visualizing Consolidation in the Global Seed Industry: 1996–2008 Philip H. Howard Department of Community, Agriculture, Recreation and Resource Studies, Michigan State University, 316 Natural Resources, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA; E-Mail: howardp@; Tel.: +1-573-355-8431; Fax: +1-517-353-8994. Received: 28 October 2009 / Accepted: 4 December 2009 / Published: 8 December 2009 Abstract: The commercial seed industry has undergone tremendous consolidation in the last 40 years as transnational corporations entered this agricultural sector, and acquired or merged with competing firms. This trend is associated with impacts that constrain the opportunities for renewable agriculture, such as reductions in seed lines and a declining prevalence of seed saving. To better characterize the current structure of the industry, ownership changes from 1996 to 2008 are represented visually with information graphics. Since the commercialization of transgenic crops in the mid-1990s, the sale of seeds has become dominated globally by Monsanto, DuPont and Syngenta. In addition, the largest firms are increasingly networked through agreements to cross-license transgenic seed traits. Keywords: seed industry; consolidation; concentration; oligopoly; information graphics 1. Introduction In the last 40 years, the commercial seed industry has transformed dramatically. It has shifted from a competitive sector of agribusiness, composed primarily of small, family-owned firms, to an industry dominated by a small number of transnational pharmaceutical/chemical corporations [1]. These corporations entered the industry by acquiring numerous smaller seed companies, and merging with large competitors. This consolidation is associated with a number of impacts that constrain