Name: Bayer CEO on Resochin donations and Roundup settlement talks during COVID-19 crisis
Uploaded: 2020-04-02
Duration: 7 min 43 s
Description: Werner Baumann says that the company's priority is helping those with the virus.

[ MUSIC ] Bruna, thank you so much for joining us today from Germany. Let's begin by our conversation by talking about Corona virus. I understand that you have been speeding up bears efforts to manufacture Chloroquine, that's the drug that many people believe that can treat people with serious illnesses. Tell us how it's working out so far. Well, thanks for the opportunity Susie. And right that we are making every effort possible to bring the stock of resorting to people who are in most need. We have donated 3 million doses to the US. And as we speak, we are working on actually trying to increase our capacity by reading some of our plans in Europe to produce even more, so that you can donate more because this is a global crisis and you're really step up to the plate. Are these tablets is this drug really working? What have been the test results so far? Well, we know from history that the result is a very old product that was invented by our company about More than 80 years ago, and it is a malaria drug. But there is an anecdotal evidence and quite a bit also of your increasing clinical evidence from the US in China during the outbreak of the crisis. That machine might as a matter of fact, be a very, very good and potent antiviral drug. There are no real clinical studies that have been done so far. But based on the experience of the Chinese, many other governments in the world also the FDA, by the way, has now approved resulting in for use, of course, always under medical supervision. And switching gears here, a little bit Verner it's because of this Corona virus crisis that you said today that a bear is postponing negotiations to settle thousands of those roundup legal cases. These are the ones that allegedly Bayers weed killer causes cancer. So how long do you expect to be on hold? Well, the most important thing right now is that we do everything to make our contribution to helping people actually survive in this monumental crisis. And Ken Feinberg already mentioned a few weeks ago, that the Corona crisis slowing down everything, including the negotiations in the mediation. And I can only tell you that we continue to be constructively engaged, but it is what it is and we cannot change the situation. Right now with us, it's all hands on deck in order to make sure that we get our products out to those in need. That makes a lot of sense. But the timing on these negotiations is somewhat important, because at the end of April, Bear has its annual meeting shareholders have been very anxious to get these legal cases behind them and to and to move on. What kind of reaction Are you expecting from shareholders because last year's meeting was somewhat contentious. Well, there are two things that really matter for us and I've said it many occasions and I'm more than happy to say it one more time. Any type of negotiated agreement needs to be financially reasonable In this situation of crisis with liquidity crunch, with many, many companies if more important than the past, and an agreement has to bring reasonable closeness or closure and finality For us, those other two conditions that need to be met. We are focusing on these two issues to be resolved to our satisfaction. Once we get there, we are going to have a negotiated and signed agreement. Is $ 10 billion a reasonable price? Because that's the number that's being swirling around on Wall Street. While there's a lot of numbers that are floating around, I cannot comment on that the negotiations continue to go on. I quite frankly don't know what the right number is. And we will find out as part of your the further mediation efforts that are being led by Ken Feinberg Was doing a very, very good job in, you're dealing with both parties ,. right? And we can find where for our viewers who may not be familiar with that very famous lawyer and mediator who's worked in a number as a supervisor and a lot of these high profile crisis cases, is there any way he can help you get beyond all of this? While Kane is intimately involved, he's talking to both parties. He's talking to judge Sharia, and all of us are you're making all efforts possible. But again, the situation has not been simpler over the last few weeks and as a matter of fact, it will continue to be difficult. With the Corona crisis, to make quick progress, You have to settle with 48, 000 plaintiffs. So that is a big job but looking beyond that, looking ahead to the future, what's your plan for roundup, are you going to relaunch it? Maybe even get out of that business. What are the next steps? So Suzzy Roundup has been around for more than 40 years. It is a safe product. It's been confirmed over and over by regulators around the world. And glyphosate is a systemic product for farmers who are really in need of this product because it enables them For no tillage, farming so because of it being so important, it will of course, remain on the market. People are asking us to do everything to keep it on the market. There's no reason to change course. And that's exactly what we are going to do. We are here to help farmers grow their crops. We are here to help people live healthy and safe lives. And one of the pieces is glyphosate is the best product in the class. Verner, you became CEO two years ago and pretty much from the get go. You got involved in all these legal cases sort about around up. The leadership experts say that all of us learn the most when we go through a crisis. What have you learned from this whole experience? Always look at the right thing to do. And everything will follow from there. That's the most important thing and that I have learned and certainly, even though it is very difficult. In situations of controversy, you'll stay the course and remain steadfast in your convictions. And that is the most important thing to do, because people look at leaders like me, like my colleagues for orientation and direction. And we have to continue even in controversy. We have to continue to stand for the things that we believe in, and that ultimately will be the right things to do. And that's exactly what I've learned and actually, certainly also Seen in situations of crisis. [ BLANK_AUDIO ]

Werner Baumann says that the company's priority is helping those with the virus.

Bayer CEO on Resochin donations and Roundup settlement talks during COVID-19 crisis

Leadership

Baumann says company's priority is helping those infected.