Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
Test Bank
CASE STUDY 2: BAYER AND MONSANTO: ACQUIRING A GLOBAL GIANT WITH A
GIANT IMAGE PROBLEM
Multiple Choice
1. Monsanto’s use of proprietary seeds created an ethical conflict between ______.
a. what is right and what is wrong
b. what helps a reputation and what helps society
c. what is legal and what is traditional
d. what is easy and what is expensive
2. Which is true regarding Bayer’s history?
a. It played a role in the Holocaust.
b. It avoided distribution of heroin.
c. It enjoyed longstanding, widespread public approval.
d. It relied heavily on selling weedkiller.
3. Monsanto’s income after February, 2000 was heavily reliant on ______.
a. hormonal birth control
b. agriculture products
c. pain relieving medications
d. blood transfusion products
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
4. What is industry observers point to as a reason for Monsanto’s public image prior to
being bought out by Bayer?
a. relying on slave labor in World War II
b. creation of harmful hormonal birth control
c. distribution of tainted blood products
d. involvement with unpopular products
5. Which is an example of a genetically modified organism (GMO)?
a. adapting heroin to be used in a medical setting
b. developing birth control that relies on artificial hormones
c. screening blood products to ensure they do not spread disease
d. breeding corn selectively so that it is more hardy and pest-resistance
6. According to a team of European scientists in 2012, using genetically modified
organisms (GMOs) has ______.
a. rapidly spread disease among soybean crops globally
b. exponentially boosted the yield of soybeans and cotton
c. led to higher instances of cancer among humans
d. had no harmful effects on humans or animals
7. What did the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine conclude
about genetically modified organisms (GMOs)?
a. They were feeding most of the world’s population.
b. They were safe for consumption.
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
c. They resulted in much higher crop yields.
d. They posed health concerns for animals and humans.
8. Why are scientists interested in developing genetically modified organism (GMO)
crops?
a. to improve crop biodiversity
b. to improve the flavor of food
c. to be viewed as technologically advanced
d. to help feed a quickly growing population
9. What is true about foods containing genetically modified organism (GMO) products?
a. They are harmful to children.
b. They are found in all the foods we eat.
c. They must be labelled as containing GMOs.
d. They are widely considered organic.
10. Some farmers reuse seeds they harvest from plants grown using Monsanto’s GMO
seeds. How has Monsanto justified filing lawsuits against these farmers?
a. The farmers are engaging in behavior that is not aligned with social norms.
b. Seed reuse is an outdated and dangerous practice.
c. Plants grown from Monsanto’s GMO seeds spread disease that diminishes crop yield.
d. Monsanto is protecting its intellectual property.
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
11. What is true regarding Monsanto’s involvement in the cotton seed supply in India
during 2016?
a. Monsanto’s seeds causes cotton yields to flatten.
b. Many farmers saw crop failures due to Monsanto’s seeds.
c. Monsanto worked harmoniously with the government in India.
d. Local farmers thought Monsanto charged too much for its seeds.
12. Which of the following is true?
a. Before joining Bayer, Monsanto had an excellent reputation.
b. Bayer’s acquisition of Monsanto occurred with very little oversight.
c. By 2016, Monsanto controlled most of the cotton seed supply in India.
d. India relies on Monsanto for all of its crop seed needs.
13. One problem caused by Monsanto’s Roundup product was that it ______.
a. lowers crop yield
b. depletes the soil of nutrients
c. created super weeds
d. stimulated excessive bee population growth
14. Which is an example of monoculture?
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
a. harvesting beans and potatoes at one time
b. growing only corn year-round
c. raising pigs, cows, and sheep
d. using seeds from multiple sources
15. Why was Monsanto’s public relations strategy initially not as successful as it hoped?
a. It was a proactive, not a reactive strategy.
b. It simply tried to justify its actions.
c. It focused on the wrongdoing of others.
d. It relied on lying and misleading the public.
16. Instead of the public relations strategy it chose, Monsanto could have ______ to
bolster its public image.
a. hired new senior officials
b. collaborated with biodiversity supporters
c. defended its less popular products more aggressively
d. spoken to the media about the importance of GMOs
17. Why would it have been more beneficial for Monsanto to engage with its critics?
a. to exercise corporate social responsibility
b. to boost its innovation and profits
c. to better communicate its product messaging
d. to persuade those in favor of biodiversity to support monoculture
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
18. After acquiring Monsanto, Bayer initially saw a bump in its public approval because
it ______.
a. emphasizing corporate social responsibility
b. taking a new approach to public relations
c. stopped selling Monsanto’s controversial products
d. eliminated Monsanto’s name from products
19. Which proved to be the biggest image problem for Bayer after it acquired
Monsanto?
a. Roundup
b. Agent Orange
c. GMO corn
d. GMO cotton
20. A United States jury found that one of Monsanto’s products caused a
groundskeeper’s cancer. As part of the settlement, Bayer had to ______.
a. state the product was developed by Monsanto on each label
b. discontinue sale of the product
c. pay a fine, compensatory damages, and punitive damages
d. admit that its product was a known carcinogen
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
True/False
1. Bayer was part of a German conglomerate prior to World War II.
2. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are a modern invention.
3. A farmer who supports biodiversity is likely to support the use of Roundup.
4. Proactive public relations strategies are better than reactive ones.
5. Once Bayer acquired Monsanto, Monsanto’s image problems were solved.
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
Essay
1. Why have some parties viewed Monsanto’s aggressive pursuit of intellectual property
rights violations negatively?
2. How did Monsanto’s involvement in the cotton seed market in India damage its
reputation?
3. Would you consider Monsanto’s public relations strategy ethical? Why or why not?
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021
4. Give an example of how Monsanto could have engaged with a corporate social
responsibility strategy.
5. If you were advising Bayer on whether or not to continue selling Roundup, what
would you advise as the most ethical choice? Why or why not?
Collins, Business Ethics 3e
SAGE Publishing, 2021