10 Companies that Changed the World
5. Bayer
Bayer is a German multinational chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in 1863. It is headquartered in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, and is well known for its original brand of aspirin. Bayer’s primary areas of business include human and veterinary pharmaceuticals; consumer healthcare products; agricultural chemicals and biotechnology products; and high value polymers.
Bayer has changed the way we do healthcare, animal care, consumer care, and the way we take medicine and conduct medical research. By 1899, Bayer’s trademark Aspirin was known worldwide. After aspirin, Bayer invented the sleeping aid and the anti-epileptic drugs. In the 1930’s the company opened a new era in medicine through the discovery and development of the antibacterial drugs. Bayer was behind such major discoveries and inventions as heroin, antibiotics, treatments for erectile disfunction, polyurethane (a very versatile polymer used for a variety of functions), and polycarbonate (a thermoplastic used in electronics, data storage and construction), insecticide, hormone pregnancy testing, birth control pills, and diabetes care.
Bayer is one of the world’s leading innovative science companies in the areas of healthcare, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and biotechnology. Thanks to Bayer’s inventions, the quality of health care and medicine has led to a drastic worldwide reduction in infant mortality, a great increase in the standards of living and longevity, and a vastly improved quality of life.
