The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has expressed its concerns via a Statement of Issues on the proposed merger of The Dow Chemical Company and DuPont.
The ACCC believed the merger could impact on competition for products such as insecticides, seeds, and materials science.
“Dow and DuPont may be the only suppliers, or potential suppliers, of ionomer and acid copolymer materials to plastics manufacturers in Australia,” said ACCC Chairman Rod Sims.
“The merger would remove competition between them, potentially to the detriment of Australian customers.
“It may also reduce the competitive tension in the research and development of new crop-protection products, therefore reducing the rate at which new products come onto the market.
“This is especially significant where pests have developed resistance to older chemical controls.”
Dow and DuPont propose to merge their two companies and spin the merged entity off into three separate companies focusing on agriculture, materials science and specialty products.
The proposal is concurrently being reviewed by competition regulators other jurisdictions including the EU, the US, and Canada.
