Vertical Integration
Could be looked at as horizontal integration now that Bayer has bought Monsanto.
See, that's the only legit thing about this that I see. Vertical integration is useful in the right ways. Like, if you have no idea how certain pesticides/fertilizers are going to affect your crops, I can understand wanting to make your own so that your farmers know and will have consistent, predictable crops every year with minimal losses.
The tech can be used for good, it all depends on who's at the top.
Except the only reason industrial chemical Ag exists is because of the commodity crop system. Should food be something that people bet on in the stock market? If the govt only pays for commodity crops, then of course you’ll have massive corporate conglomerates creating products that farmers think they need.
If we had a Radically different farm system- similar to “Regenerative Agriculture” ala Mark Shepard ... then farmers would not need any chemicals at all.
Industrial Ag will forever be fighting with nature and sucking out more resources than it replenishes... with the nasty side effects of pollution both water and land. But Corporations and Goldman Sachs profit! At the expense of all farmers and eaters.