Monsanto Attempts to Balance Stakeholder Interests

Course: MAN 3065 Group#: 1
Date Submitted: Oct. 2, 2014 Member: Evelyn Arfaro
Reference#: 810149 Member: Claudia Calmet
Term: 2014-15 Member: Claudia Castro
Days: T & Th Member: Loanny Martinez
Time: 7:05 pm – 8:20 pm Member: Jeanette Ramos
Prof: Hoa N. Burrows, CPA, MBA

Monsanto is one of the largest seed company in the United States and was found by John F. Queeny in 1901 in St. Louis, Missouri. The Monsanto company has created a variety of products to include the artificial sweetener saccharine used by Coca-Cola. Due to past major legal obstacles (Orange Agent) they shifted their efforts from the chemical realm to an organization focused on biotechnology. Their past history has generated a consensus on the possibility of how biotechnology might affect the environment and peoples’ health (Ferrell 302). In order to look at stakeholder’s interest we must look at whether Monsanto maintain an ethical culture that effectively responds to various stakeholders; we must compare the benefits of growing GM seeds for crops with the potential negative consequences of using them; and how should Monsanto manage the potential harm to plant and animal life from using products such as Roundup. Who are Monsanto Stakeholders?
Monsanto Stakeholders are their employees, customers, suppliers, shareholders, communities and investors. These are the people that have an interest in the business success or how they get there. Of course the company is in business to profit, but in the process it needs to make sure it is doing everything in its power to satisfy the needs of our society and environment, in other words, sustainable development. History tells us that this company has been through a lot of financial devastation mostly due to its lack of environmental and social responsibility, and we also would like to say, ignorance. In the past, we all believed that nature will always find its way to go back to normal, now a days we know that is not correct. If we don’t take care of our planet, we can expect more drastic climate changes, fresh water reduction, illnesses, and so on(Ferrell 303).
Monsanto have learned that our culture has changed and they have adapted to be more ethically and socially responsible for the survival of their business and the satisfaction of stakeholders. Their new strategic direction was a more ethical culture, breaking away from chemicals that harmed life to a new focus in agriculture, with the potential benefits to help life. More specific biotechnology, creating genetically modified seeds, called Roundup Ready Crops. These seeds helped crops to be resistant to their herbicide Roundup, which is used by farmer to kill weed. Monsanto created the perfect formula to increase profitability, keeping investor and shareholders happy. These genetically modified seeds help farmers to produce more healthy crops, increasing the food supply in an era were increasing population made the demand for food grow in giant steps and were uncertainty awaits for the future generations if the grow in population continues(Ferrell 304). With the Monsanto focused on the genetically modified (GM) seeds and GM foods the company recovered financially and socially, and is now prospering worldwide providing high yield foods and jobs to nearly 20,000 people in 160 countries. Though some groups of stakeholders, such as consumer advocacy groups and some in the science community remained unchanged and cause public scares and have destroyed crops. Many of the scares were unsubstantiated and the product was misused to appear harmful but in an industry with new scientific technology fear of the unknown is present and to be expected especially the fear of unknown long term effects, even though the FDA has declared biotech crops safe (Ferrell 305).
Compare the benefits of growing GM seeds for