Bayer faces backlash in Germany as lawmakers condemn Monsanto deal

German lawmakers called on regulators to curb Bayer’s $66 billion takeover of U.S. seed giant Monsanto in a skepticism-laced parliamentary session that highlights the backlash to the deal Bayer faces in its home market. The debate Wednesday in the lower house of parliament, called by the opposition Green Party, laid bare the depth of resistance to Bayer’s buying a U.S. company that many Germans view as a champion of genetically modified crops and a weedkiller they believe might cause cancer. Eight of the 12 lawmakers who spoke, including parliamentarians from within Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition, cast doubt on the acquisition.