Corteva Agriscience Could Split in Two

OMAHA (DTN) -- Corteva Agriscience is looking to split its seed and crop inputs businesses into separate companies, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.

Citing, "people familiar with the matter," the WSJ noted Corteva has a market value of around $50 billion "and could unveil its plans soon, assuming the talks don't hit any last-minute snags."

The article suggested Corteva could follow other recent "corporate unwindings" that have occurred in 2025 such as Kraft Heinz.

While Corteva and competitors such as Bayer and Syngenta have closely married their seed businesses and biotech traits with their pesticide offerings, the WSJ suggested one reason for separating Corteva's seed unit from its pesticide business would be to "help shield its seeds from any future liabilities associated with its pest and weed-killing chemicals." Bayer has faced years of legal liability and battles over its glyphosate product, Roundup.

Still, as the WSJ noted, "Corteva hasn't had the same legal pressure as Bayer and isn't involved in that litigation."

Corteva is the owner of the seed brand Pioneer and has been a strong financial performer because of products such as Enlist soybeans, the WSJ noted.

The company's stock is trading at more than $74 a share and saw a nearly 2% increase Friday after the WSJ report came out. During the past year, the stock has ranged from a low of $53.40 to a high of $77.41 a share.

Corteva was created as part of the 2017 merger between DuPont and Dow Chemical. Out of that, Corteva Agriscience was spun off as a standalone, publicly trade company in 2019.

Corteva reported $16.9 billion in sales in 2024, of which $9.5 billion was from seed sales and nearly $7.4 billion was from its crop protection unit. The company has business units globally, though its dominant market remains North America, which accounted for $8.6 billion in total sales last year.

In the first half of 2025, Corteva reported $10.9 billion in sales, up 3% from a year ago, citing seed pricing gains and strong growth in seed sales in North America. But Corteva also noted the company's crop protection business was facing competitive price pressures.

In a fact sheet, Corteva stated the company sells seed for more than 100 crops and has more than 400 seed and crop protection products. The company has roughly 100 production facilities around the world and more than 120 R&D facilities. Corteva employs about 22,000 people.

The WSJ suggested, "A breakup of Corteva could usher in a dealmaking wave in agriculture not seen since the first Trump administration."

That stretch from 2017 to 2020 included Corteva's spinoff along with Bayer's purchase of Monsanto and ChemChina's purchase of Syngenta. And the pattern seems familiar. "A period of low grain prices from bumper crops pressured the farm economy and led companies to consolidate to cut costs," the WSJ noted.

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

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