Fischer To Join Syngenta Family

Today, Syngenta announced the acquisition of the Fischer group. “We’re joining them as a totally independent company,” Gary Falkenstein, co-president of Fischer USA, told GPN. “In the North America, Canada and the United States, Fischer USA is going to remain Fischer USA. It’s going to remain in Boulder, Colo. We’re going to be totally independent.” Falkenstein added that Fischer USA will report directly to the head of flowers in Basel, Switzerland.

Headquartered in Germany, Fischer is a privately held vegetative flower company specializing in the breeding and marketing of flower crops.

Syngenta is acquiring the Fischer group for a consideration of approximately $67 million on a cash-and-debt-free basis. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2007 pending regulatory approvals.

“We’ve sent notices to all our customers, like the brokers especially. We’ve talked to several of them this morning and also to our root and sells, and it’s going to be business as usual,” Falkenstein said. “We value here, as does Syngenta, our new owner, the relationship we have with the other brokers, such as Ball, Gloeckner, HF Michell’s and all the others. We’re going to do everything we can to build on it along with Syngenta, which is another one of our customers. We’ll be separate businesses with the same owner you might say.”

For fiscal year 2005/2006, Fischer reported sales of $86 million. The company sells flower crops in more than 20 countries under different brands, including Fischer and pelfi; these brands will be maintained. Fischer employs around 1,700 people.

Syngenta’s S&G Flowers operates in the pot and bedding plant industry with a large proprietary portfolio. Operating on a global basis, S&G breeds and markets proprietary flowers as seeds, young plants and cuttings for the ornamental industry. In 2006, Syngenta reported flowers sales of $228 million.

Syngenta is an agribusiness committed to sustainable agriculture through innovative research and technology. The company is a leader in crop protection, and ranks third in the high-value commercial seeds market. Sales in 2006 were approximately $8.1 billion. Syngenta employs around 19,500 people in more than 90 countries.

Further information is available at www.syngenta.com.