ST. LOUIS, Sept. 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Monsanto Company (NYSE: MON) was named a 100 Best Company 2008 today by Working Mother magazine for its commitment to making the lives of working parents easier by offering family-friendly benefits and compensation. Monsanto is the only St. Louis-area company to receive the award.

"A key component of the Monsanto Pledge is to create a great place to work for our employees. With benefits such as flexibility programs, health care benefits for part-time employees and adoption assistance, Monsanto ensures that our employees have the support to manage the demands of life and work," said Jan Holloway, senior vice president, chief of staff and community relations.

Working Mother selected Monsanto based on an application of more than 500 questions, which included details on its workforce, compensation, child care, flex-time programs and leave policies.

Monsanto offers working parents several benefits, including: on-site child care, child care reimbursement, flexible work arrangements and guaranteed time off following childbirth or an adoption. The company also has a "Working Parents" group that aims to help to improve company policies and benefits and create networking opportunities for parents.

"Monsanto focuses on the benefits and issues to make life easier for working parents," said Tanya Fagaly, a mother of a 3-year old daughter and a member of Monsanto's Working Parents group and the Technology team. "Having these benefits helps me to pursue my professional career while maintaining a successful family life."

A complete list of the 2008 Working Mother 100 Best Companies can be found at http://www.workingmother.com.

About Monsanto Company

Monsanto Company is a leading global provider of technology-based solutions and agricultural products that improve farm productivity and food quality. Monsanto remains focused on enabling both small-holder and large-scale farmers to produce more from their land while conserving more of our world's natural resources such as water and energy. To learn more about our business and our commitments, please visit: http://www.monsanto.com/.

SOURCE Monsanto Company