In spite of the recent merger, the company intends to separate into three independent companies during the first quarter of 2019 that will focus on distinct product categories including agriculture, specialty products, and materials science. The agriculture business will be known as Corteva Agriscience, while specialty products and materials science will be named DuPont and Dow, respectively.
The merger hasn’t come without criticism. The European Commission spent time assessing whether the merger would concurrently kill competition in relevant business areas. Consequently, the merger date was pushed back several times with the commission finally approving in April 2017. Despite the delayed approval, speculation remains on whether such concentrated power in the chemical and agricultural industries will have serious implications for customers. The coupling of these two chemical giants brings together the third and fourth largest chemical companies in terms of market capitalization, accounting for some 152 billion U.S. dollars in stock value. With around 877,000 workers in the U.S. agricultural industry, it is yet to seen what effects this will have on business.
