St. Louis, Missouri
August 8, 2002

Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) announced that it plans to price a public offering of $600 million, 10-year notes today.

"Monsanto is pleased to be completing the first stage of its capitalization plan, and we anticipate seeking additional long-term debt capital in the near future," said Monsanto's Chief Financial Officer Terry Crews. Crews said the proceeds from today's offering will be used to pay down commercial paper borrowings.

Monsanto expects that Moody's Investors Service will affirm Monsanto's current long-term debt rating of "Baa1" (with a stable outlook) based on Crews' statement, and that Moody's will issue a press release this morning. Standard & Poor's also has affirmed its long-term debt rating of "A" (with a stable outlook) in a press release last week.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor will there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under state securities law.

Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food quality. For more information on Monsanto, see  www.monsanto.com .