Monsanto eliminates 1,000 more jobs to cut costs

WASHINGTON (AP) — Monsanto said today it will eliminate another 1,000 jobs as it expands a cost-cutting plan designed to deal with falling sales of biotech-corn seeds and other financial headwinds.

The additional layoffs will bring the agriculture giant's total planned cuts to 3,600 jobs over the next two years, or about 16 percent of its global workforce. In October the company first announced the restructuring plan, intended to streamline its sales, R&D and other operations.

The St. Louis-based company says the additional cuts will help generate between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion in total savings, up from previous estimates of $850 million to $900 million.

Its shares slipped in morning trading today.

Monsanto has struggled in recent quarters to deal with slumping corn prices in the U.S., which have reduced demand for its best-selling product: genetically-enhanced corn seeds. Farmers are shifting more acres to other crops after surpluses of corn and other crops, including wheat, have squashed commodity prices.

The job cuts came as Monsanto reported a $253-million loss in the first fiscal quarter, citing foreign currency pressures and falling seed sales.

Despite a 17 percent drop in revenue, the company's adjusted results beat Wall Street expectations.