Agribusiness Update for Friday 10/23/15

Syngenta AG CEO Mike Mack has stepped aside amid shareholder criticism for his refusal to engage with Monsanto over its $47 billion takeover proposal. Syngenta has named Chief Financial Officer John Ramsay the interim CEO. Mack's resignation after seven years in charge was welcomed by a shareholder group lobbying for a full strategic review. Alliance of Critical Syngenta shareholders said "Syngenta urgently needs a leadership that recognizes the realities of the fast changing markets and draws the right conclusions."

As the Senate Ag Committee seeks to pass a biotech labeling bill yet this year, the National Corn Growers Association is urging action on what it calls a "National Food Labeling Standard." The Senate Ag Committee held a hearing Wednesday on GMO labeling. NCGA Trade Policy and Biotechnology Action Team Chair John Linder said "Congress, and only Congress, can now prevent a costly and confusing patchwork of state labeling laws from taking effect next year."

That's today's Agribusiness Update from the Ag Information Network of the West.