Bayer-Monsanto potential pairing of giants

Bayer wants to buy Monsanto for $62 billion, hooking up the German chemical and drug company with the St. Louis-based producer of seeds and weed-killers.

Here’s a look at their products, which have more than $65 billion in total annual revenue.

Bayer

Bayer AG, based in Leverkusen, Germany, sells a broad range of products beyond its nearly 120-year-old aspirin, including prescription and over-the-counter medicines for people, vaccines and drugs for pets and livestock, and seeds and chemicals for farmers and home gardeners.

• PRESCRIPTION DRUGS

Bayer is a leader in birth control and hemophilia treatments. Its medicines include contraceptives pills Yasmin, Yasminelle and Yaz; Mirena and Skyla intrauterine devices; Essure, a permanent contraceptive that blocks the fallopian tubes; hemophilia treatments Kogenate and Kovaltry; cancer drugs Nexavar, Stivarga and Xofigo; antibiotics Avelox and Cipro, erectile dysfunction pill Levitra, Betaseron for multiple sclerosis, Desonate for eczema in babies, and Adempas for high blood pressure in lungs. With U.S. partners, Bayer jointly markets Eylea, an injected drug for vision-destroying macular degeneration, and Xarelto, the top seller among new drugs for preventing heart attacks and strokes.

• CONSUMER HEALTH

Bayer is No. 2 globally in sales of nonprescription drugs and other health products. Besides its iconic aspirin, those include Aleve pain reliever, One A Day, Flintstones and other vitamin brands; Alka-Seltzer and Rennie for heartburn and upset stomach, laxatives MiraLax and Phillips’ Colon Health, cold sore treatment Campho-Phenique, Skinoren for acne in women, Canesten for vaginal yeast and other fungal infections, eczema cream Advantan, nonprescription Claritin allergy pills, Afrin decongestant spray, Coppertone sun care products and Dr. Scholl’s foot care items.

• PET AND LIVESTOCK MEDICINES

Bayer sells Advantage and Advantix, a line of topical flea and tick protection for dogs and cats, plus shampoos and defoggers; Seresto, flea-and-tick collars for dogs and cats; antibiotic Baytril for cats, dogs and farm animals; quellin, a prescription pain and inflammation drug for dogs; Drontal and Profender for killing worms in dogs and cats; Veraflox, for treating skin, wound and some internal infections in dogs and cats, and Zelnate, an immune-system stimulator for fighting respiratory disease in cattle.

• PLANT PRODUCTS

These include Bayer Advanced and Natria home garden products to control weeds, pests and flower and vegetable diseases, plus numerous farm products, including Liberty herbicide and a related treatment to protect crops, Corvus herbicide, Poncho and Votivo biological insecticide and fungicide seed treatments, and new insecticide Sivanto, which helps protect beneficial insects such as pollinators.

Monsanto

Monsanto Co., based in St. Louis, has dominated the market for genetically enhanced seeds for more than a decade, particularly in the U.S., where everything from corn flakes to soda and beef are often produced from crops that use technology first developed by Monsanto.

• SEEDS

Monsanto makes biotech-enhanced seeds, for corn, soybeans, cotton and other agricultural staples. These yield-boosting seeds are designed to resist insects and tolerate herbicides, allowing famers to wipe out weeds without harming crops. Some of the company’s best-selling products, including corn seeds, feature extra traits to help crops weather droughts.

The company also sells conventional seeds for tomatoes, carrots and onions.

• HERBICIDES

Monsanto sells herbicides for killing weeds on farms, golf courses, gardens and other green spaces. Its chief product is decades-old weed killer Roundup. It dominated Monsanto’s business when it mainly sold chemicals and remains a multi-billion-dollar seller annually, though sales have recently declined.