News 2008

November 2008	Rice activities in the Asia / Pacific region strengthened In November 2008, Bayer CropScience opened a rice development center in Thailand in order to make possible a second green revolution in Asia. The center will considerably extend the company’s activities for breeding and marketing commercial rice seed in the region. Some 90 percent of the global rice harvest is produced in Asia and also consumed there. The introduction of high-quality seed tailor-made for the local weather and growing conditions will help to safeguard the global food supply in the 21st century. To this end, Bayer CropScience is concentrating on high-yield varieties like Arize®. The scientists at the new facility will develop hybrid rice with innovative traits with crop-growing relevance, such as resistance to certain diseases or pests. Bayer CropScience previously opened a rice research laboratory in Singapore in June 2008.
November 2008	Young Environmental Envoys visit Bayer At the beginning of November 2008, 50 Young Environmental Envoys from 18 countries on four continents spent a week in Leverkusen, Germany, to find out about developments in and prospects for environmental protection and sustainable development. The young people on the field trip were selected from around 1,200 participants on the basis of the environmental projects they presented in special competitions organized by Bayer in their home countries. Their schedule included tours of various Bayer sites, discussions with sustainability experts on site and visits to communal institutions and other companies. The Young Environmental Envoy Program is one of the key elements in an alliance between Bayer and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) for youth and the environment. When the Environmental Envoys return home, they are able to raise awareness of sustainable development by passing on the impressions, experience and insights they have gained. Many former participants in this Bayer initiative now have jobs where they play a key role in environmental protection in their home countries. 6:39 Min.
November 2008	Cooperation in the battle against cancer In November 2008, the German Cancer Research Center and Bayer HealthCare formed a strategic research alliance scheduled to run for an initial period of two years. The collaboration is aimed at enabling more rapid exploitation of research findings for the development of new cancer drugs and enhancing the evaluation of innovative therapeutic approaches for tumor diseases. To this end, the partners will each invest €1.75 million in joint cancer research through 2010. The cooperation will focus on joint application-oriented research into molecules, mechanisms and models that could provide the impetus for the development of new anticancer therapies. 1:07 Min.
November 2008	Awards for company Bayer is recognized as Brazil’s best chemical and pharmaceutical company. This was the result of a survey conducted in November 2008 by Época Negocios Magazine, one of the country’s leading business news magazines. Respondents were asked to rank over 200 local and international companies on several criteria, including trust, quality, social and environmental responsibility, and innovation. The Group is also a top performer when it comes to online recruitment. Bayer’s career website for its German operations is rated one of the best in Europe. Swedish consultants Potentialpark awarded Bayer first place among German companies in its “Top Employer Web Benchmark 2009.” Bayer’s career website is now permitted to display the logo “Top Career Website 2009.”
November 2008	Settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice Investigations by the U. S. Department of Justice into certain marketing programs conducted by Bayer Health- Care’s Diabetes Care Division between 1998 and 2003 ended with a settlement in November 2008. Bayer HealthCare agreed to make a one-off payment of US$97.5 million and the case was closed to avoid further time-consuming and expensive disputes and the associated legal uncertainties. The settlement does not, however, amount to an admission of guilt on the part of Bayer HealthCare. The company has cooperated in full with the authorities since the start of the investigation in 2003.
October 2008	New pipeline for the CO network Bayer MaterialScience (BMS) is extending the existing integrated carbon monoxide system between Dormagen and Leverkusen by constructing a new CO supply pipeline between the chemical facilities at Dormagen and Uerdingen. The North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) state parliament established repeatedly that the project serves the public good. In addition, in April 2009, BMS and the state of NRW concluded an agreement safeguarding the benefit of the public good of the pipeline. In October 2008, the Düsseldorf district authorities issued a plan supplement order in addition to the original plan approval order. The commissioning of the pipeline is also dependent on legal proceedings, since nearby residents are worried about health risks. Bayer is very much aware of its responsibility to its neighbors and the region. The safety of the pipeline takes top priority and has been attested in several expert reports. Bayer is keen to maintain close contact with the local community and provides comprehensive information about the project, for example in a brochure entitled “Your Questions Answered,” which has been available since October 2008.
October 2008	UNEP-Bayer painting competition The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), which Bayer teams up with to organize the annual International Children’s Painting Competition on the Environment, auctioned selected pictures in New York in October 2008, raising a total of US$ 21,000. The proceeds will be donated to an aid fund administered for children in a position of need following climate-related disasters. UNEP and Bayer arrange a children’s painting competition every year on a major environmental theme. More than 15,000 children from 90 countries took part in 2008. The exhibition of paintings from last year’s competition on the subject of climate change has also been shown in Italy, Poland, Hungary, Germany and Malta.
September 2008	Renewed inclusion in important sustainability indices Bayer appeared for the tenth time in a row in 2008 / 2009 in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index World (DJSI World). The world’s most important sustainability index is based on a Corporate Sustainability Assessment by the well-known Swiss rating agency SAM Research. In September 2008, Bayer was once again listed in the Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index, the first global climate protection index. Through this inclusion, the investor group of the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) in New York has highlighted that Bayer is one of the leading international companies in the field of climate protection.
August 2008	Explosion in Institute An explosion and fire occurred at a Bayer CropScience plant in Institute, West Virginia on August 28, 2008. Two employees died as a result of the incident. Air samples taken at the site boundaries did not reveal any elevated concentrations of hazardous substances in the environment.
June 2008	Bayer receives BDI Environmental Award Bayer has driven forward the development and application of the energy-saving oxygen depolarized cathode technology for chlorine production as part of the Bayer Climate Program. As a result, in June 2008, Bayer was presented with two prizes – the Environmental Award of the Federation of German Industries (BDI) in the category “Environmentally Friendly Technologies” and a European Business Award for the Environment. Oxygen depolarized cathode technology reduces electricity consumption and levels of CO₂ emissions by 30 percent compared with conventional methods. Since 2003, Bayer has been using the technology at its Brunsbüttel site in Germany and since 2008 on a major industrial scale in a facility in Shanghai, China. Among other applications, chlorine is used to produce high-grade polyurethanes. The innovative technology makes targeted use of oxygen in the electrolysis of hydrochloric acid to reduce the electrical energy required.
May 2008	Influence on pharmaceutical prices In May 2008, the German Federal Cartel Office (Bundeskartellamt) imposed a €10.34 million fine on Bayer Vital, the German marketing subsidiary of Bayer HealthCare. The Office believes that it has evidence to show that employees of the company influenced the retail prices of nonprescription (OTC) drug products in pharmacies in violation of antitrust law. Bayer Vital does not share the legal position of the Bundeskartellamt. However, in order to avoid a protracted legal conflict and the associated negative repercussions on its business activities, Bayer Vital GmbH decided to accept the fine. In addition, Bayer Vital has reviewed the marketing measures for its otc medicines in pharmacies in their entirety and made changes where this was appropriate and necessary.
May 2008	Marketing authorization suspended In spring 2008, incorrectly dressed corn seed led to large-scale bee mortality in the Oberrhein region of Germany. As the seed treatment product Poncho® had been used to protect the crop against the dreaded western corn rootworm, the German Federal Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety (Bundesamt für Lebensmittelsicherheit und Verbraucherschutz, BVL) suspended the marketing authorization for this corn seed dressing in May 2008. Bayer CropScience has since submitted documentation verifying the safety of the product when used correctly. Bayer CropScience also agreed to pay a settlement of €2 million to support the beekeepers affected by the population losses .
May 2008	Support for the earthquake region of Sichuan In response to the devastating earthquake in Sichuan, China, in May 2008, the Bayer Cares Foundation provided the Sichuan Technology and Business College with 20 classrooms, 50 apartments and a mobile health center in the form of modern containers. Teams of experts from the three Bayer subgroups under the project management of Bayer Technology Services worked closely together on developing, constructing and delivering the containers. The total cost of the project, which amounted to €825,000, was borne by the Bayer Cares Foundation. This brings the total amount of aid donated by Bayer to the earthquake victims in China in the form of medicines and material and monetary donations to more than €2.2 million by the end of 2008. Providing rapid, unbureaucratic help for people affected by natural catastrophes is one of the main objectives of the Bayer Cares Foundation. 1:11 Min.