Bayer Accelerates Innovation Investment to Drive Sustainable Business Growth in China

Recently, Bill Anderson, Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer AG, was invited to visit China with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. Following his attendance at the China Development Forum in Beijing at the end of March this year, this is Bill Anderson’s second visit to China in a short period of time. This fully demonstrates Bayer's commitment to the Chinese market and confidence in its development in China, as well as its determination to leverage its expertise in healthcare and agriculture to serve patients, consumers, and farmers in China.

"Whether in the fields of prescription drugs, consumer health products, or crop science, China is one of the most important strategic pillars for Bayer globally, both from a research and development perspective and from a market standpoint," said Bill Anderson, Chairman of the Board of Management of Bayer AG. "Innovation is the driving force behind business growth. Being able to bring more global technologies into China and enable more Chinese technologies to reach the world is crucial for achieving sustained economic growth and high-quality development."

Increase Innovation Investment to Boost China's Development

With over 140 years in China, Bayer has witnessed the country's development and achieved steady business growth. In 2023, Bayer's sales in China reached 3.524 billion euros, with nearly 8,000 employees. The company has established offices in multiple cities across the nation, along with several research and innovation centers and six production bases.

As China fully advances high-quality development and fosters "new quality productive forces," healthcare and sustainable agricultural development are encountering historic new opportunities. Against this backdrop, Bayer remains firmly committed to the Chinese market and is seizing China's new developmental opportunities. In recent years, Bayer has continuously increased its investment in innovation, supporting China’s national strategies such as "Healthy China," "Rural Revitalization," and sustainable development, while jointly addressing challenges in health, nutrition, and climate change.

In the prescription drug sector, Bayer continues to introduce innovative drugs to meet unmet medical needs of patients. As of February 2024, Bayer's Global R&D Center for Prescription Drugs in Beijing has introduced 19 innovative drugs to China, with a total of 36 new indications or formulations approved. Meanwhile, Bayer drives innovation through dual efforts of local R&D centers and external collaborations. In November 2023, Bayer reached a cooperation agreement with Shanghai Pharmaceuticals to jointly establish the Bayer Co.Lab collaborative innovation platform. This initiative aims to promote cutting-edge innovations in areas such as cell and gene therapies, support and accelerate the industrial transformation of scientific research achievements, and empower local startups by cultivating capabilities in new drug development and commercial operations, as well as connecting with global pharmaceutical industry networks and resources. This marks the first time that Bayer Co.Lab has been established in China, becoming the largest collaborative innovation platform set up by Bayer in the Asia-Pacific region.

In terms of health consumer products, Bayer continuously expands its cooperation with local R&D institutions and innovative enterprises, promoting the integration of "industry, academia, and research." In the past three years, it has launched more than 10 new products that are deeply loved by consumers, covering areas such as digestive health, skin health, and nutritional supplements. In 2024, Bayer's Health Consumer Products division plans to establish the China Center for Innovation and Partnership (CCIP) in Shanghai. The center is expected to invest 20 million euros to accelerate innovation, focusing on consumers and science-based approaches to promote the R&D of multiple categories such as medicines and health foods, exploring more self-care solutions suitable for Chinese consumers.

In crop science, Bayer continues to actively develop and introduce agricultural inputs and services that meet diverse needs for the Chinese market, leveraging global innovation capabilities to deeply support the modernization of Chinese agriculture. Bayer offers seeds for two major crop categories – corn and vegetables – as well as approximately 100 plant protection products across five categories, which control pests, diseases, and weeds, improve quality and efficiency, and increase yield and income. Bayer is also the first multinational company certified for green food production materials in China (as of February 2024, a total of 20 plant protection products have been certified for green production materials). Over the years, Bayer has actively conducted training on the safe use of pesticides, collaborated with plant protection stations in multiple provinces to introduce integrated safe pesticide use service stations, and partnered with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, various research institutions, and local agricultural companies.

Global Innovation Engine, Shaping a Better Future

As an innovative life sciences company, Bayer, guided by the grand mission of "Health for All, Hunger for None," actively seeks breakthrough innovations to bring positive impacts to humanity and the planet we rely on. Every year, Bayer invests substantial R&D expenditures in search of groundbreaking solutions. In 2023, Bayer AG's R&D expenditure was 5.4 billion euros.

In the healthcare sector, Bayer has invested over 3.5 billion euros to establish a cell and gene therapy platform. Bayer's innovative product pipeline is already benefiting from a robust portfolio of preclinical and mid-clinical stage cell and gene therapies, with seven projects at various stages of clinical development, targeting therapeutic areas with unmet medical needs, such as leading programs in Parkinson’s disease, Pompe disease, and congestive heart failure. Additionally, Bayer significantly enhanced its drug discovery capabilities through the acquisition of Vividion Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company leveraging novel discovery technologies to unlock high-value, traditionally undruggable targets.

In agriculture, Bayer, as an innovation engine and market leader in the global agricultural field, provides unique solutions for growers to help them address challenges related to food security and climate change. Bayer boasts a leading R&D pipeline in the industry, featuring multiple new technologies such as customized seeds, next-generation breeding techniques, transformative trait technologies, and sustainable small-molecule solutions, all aimed at advancing the sustainable transformation of agriculture. For instance, Bayer’s Preceon™ Smart Corn System integrates three innovative elements—short-stature corn hybrids, the FieldView™ digital platform, and tailored services—to deliver multi-layered innovations in crop protection, optimized use of agricultural inputs, and increased yield per unit area. CoverCress and other cover crops enable farmers to protect their fields sustainably, enhance soil health, increase income, and promote the widespread adoption of regenerative agriculture. We look forward to further strengthening cooperation with China in new technologies and contributing to the green transformation of Chinese agriculture.

Bayer will continue to leverage its global innovation resources and capabilities to bring more and better innovative technologies and products to China at a faster pace. At the same time, it looks forward to working with Chinese partners to help more of China’s innovative practices reach the world.