Monheim, June 14, 2016- Bayer has developed a new cap seal to protect users against counterfeit crop protection products. The Bayer CapSeal, based on the Trustseal technology of the Leonhard Kurz Stiftung, is a cap seal with visual security features and a QR code. Scanning the code with the interactive smartphone app from Bayer gives the user important information about the authenticity of the product. The CapSeal is currently being introduced at all of Bayer's European production sites for crop protection products.

'Bayer is working with farmers, retailers and the authorities to resolutely tackle product counterfeiting,' says Dr. Hans-Joachim Henn, Global Head of Anti-Counterfeit Management at Bayer. 'Innovative packaging technologies like the Trustseal visual security element from the Leonhard Kurz Stiftung provide users with important information about the authenticity of Bayer products and thus help prevent the use of counterfeit products.' The proportion of counterfeit products in the crop protection market has increased globally. According to a2015 studycommissioned by the European Commission's Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, approximately 10 percent of all crop protection products in Europe are counterfeits.

Bayer's CapSeal app is available free of charge to customers and can be downloaded in a few simple steps from thehttps://capseal.bayer.com/website in the respective national language.

After installing the app, customers use the integrated camera on their smartphones to read the QR code on the CapSeal. The code is automatically compared with an online database to confirm its authenticity. The customer receives reliable information about the authenticity of the scanned QR code within a matter of seconds and thus important information about the authenticity of the product. If the code cannot be clearly authenticated and confirmed, the product is most likely counterfeit. In that case, the customer can contact a Bayer employee directly by e-mail via the app.

At the beginning of 2016, Bayer started to apply the new Cap Seal to all of its crop protection products manufactured in Europe. Customers in all European countries now have access to this new technology which will help protect them against the risks associated with counterfeit crop protection products.

Bayer: Science For A Better Life
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the Life Science fields of health care and agriculture. Its products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen. In fiscal 2015, the Group employed around 117,000 people and had sales of EUR 46.3 billion. Capital expenditures amounted to EUR 2.6 billion, R&D expenses to EUR 4.3 billion. These figures include those for the high-tech polymers business, which was floated on the stock market as an independent company named Covestro on October 6, 2015. For more information, go towww.bayer.com.

LEONHARD KURZ Stiftung & CO. KG
KURZ is an international manufacturer of functional and decorative coatings. In the field of product protection, KURZ is a globally renowned supplier of visual security solutions and markets a range of concepts for brand protection: TRUSTSEAL® holographic authenticity labels are difficult to copy and offer a high level of protection against counterfeiting.

Forward-Looking Statements
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer's public reports which are available on the Bayer website atwww.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

Bayer AG published this content on 14 June 2016 and is solely responsible for the information contained herein.
Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 14 June 2016 12:09:06 UTC.

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