Agrochemicals

UPL ended the FY26 on a strong note, driven by broad-based growth across geographies and business platforms, despite continued pricing pressure in the global crop protection industry

FMC Corporation on Thursday said it would sell its India commercial business to Crystal Crop Protection Ltd for US 252 million, as the US agricultural sciences company looks to reduce debt and refocus resources on higher-growth markets. The deal, under which FMC has signed a definitive agreement, is subject to regulatory approval and customary closing conditions, including adjustments for cash, debt and working capital. FMC said it would direct all proceeds toward debt reduction. FMC had expressed intention to exit its India crop protection commercial operations in July 2025, saying the move would allow it to re-enter the Indian market through a new go-to-market strategy while redeploying capital elsewhere. Under the terms of the transaction, Crystal Crop will acquire FMC India's commercial operations in the crop protection segment, including a licence to use FMC's brands sold in the country, FMC said in a statement. Crystal will also receive a preferred supply agreement for certai

The duty exemption will start from April 2 and continue till June 30, 2026, an official order said

Agrochemical stocks fell sharply as tensions in West Asia threatened supply chains and raised raw-material costs, with analysts warning of higher fertiliser prices, subsidy needs and margin pressure

Elara Capital continues to prefer fertiliser companies over their agrochemical counterparts due to several growth opportunities offered by the sector without any meaningful risk

Agrochemical exports surged to $3.3 billion in FY25, making India the world's third-largest exporter as ACFI seeks policy support for growth momentum

Dhanuka Agritech's profit after tax jumped 13.52 per cent year-on-year to ₹55.5 crore in Q1FY26, as against ₹48.89 crore in the same quarter last year

Ahead of the issue, Indogulf Cropsciences allocated 5.25 million equity shares to anchor investors at the upper price band of ₹111 per share to raise ₹58.19 crore

The Crop Care Federation of India (CCFI) on Thursday urged the government to reject patent evergreening for agrochemicals, arguing that such a move would harm farmers and local manufacturers by creating monopolistic market conditions. The industry body criticised a newly formed government committee examining data protection provisions for agrochemicals, claiming it would unfairly benefit multinational corporations and importers at the expense of domestic producers. CCFI Chairman Deepak Shah, in a statement, said extending patent protections beyond the standard 20-year period would lead to overpricing and reduced accessibility for small and marginal farmers. "The government should protect the interest of domestic manufacturers and farmers," Shah stated. The federation highlighted that between 2010 and 2022, while 62 new pesticide molecules were patented in India, only 27 were commercially launched. Of the remaining 35 products, their patent periods have already expired. Citing a 20

Agrochemicals firm Best Agrolife Ltd on Friday reported a flat consolidated net profit of Rs 94.65 crore for the quarter ended September 2024. Its net profit stood at Rs 94.86 crore in the year-ago period. The total income declined to Rs 747.61 crore in the second quarter of this fiscal from Rs 808.35 crore in the corresponding period of the preceding year, the company said in a regulatory filing. Vimal Kumar, Managing Director, Best Agrolife Ltd, said, "Best Agrolife has delivered a strong performance in Q2 FY25, capitalising on favourable market conditions and executing our strategic shift toward branded soles". "Our commitment to enhancing brand visibility and expanding our market presence has yielded positive results, contributing significantly to both top-line and bottom-line growth," he added.

Agro-chemicals firm Coromandel International on Wednesday announced the acquisition of an additional 8.82 per cent equity stake in Senegal-based rock phosphate mining company BMCC through its wholly-owned subsidiary. With this, the company's overall shareholding in Baobab Mining and Chemicals Corporation (BMCC) will increase to 53.8 per cent. "Coromandel will invest USD 3.84 million (Rs 32 core) in BMCC, besides a loan infusion of USD 6.5 million (Rs 54 crore) to fund expansion projects and meet working capital requirements," Coromandel International said in a statement. Rock phosphate is a critical raw material for manufacturing Phosphoric Acid, an intermediate used for Phosphatic fertiliser production. BMCC, incorporated in 2011, has a renewable exploitation permit for processing phosphate ore and Coromandel acquired a 45 per cent stake in September 2022. The company has since stabilised mining operations and is currently commissioning a fixed processing plant to optimise rock ..

India's agrochemical exports could increase to over Rs 80,000 crore in the next four years provided the industry is facilitated with conducive environment, according to a report by AFCI and EY. A report by Industry body Agro Chem Federation of India (ACFI) and EY titled 'Indian Agrochemical Industry: The Story, the challenges and the aspirations' noted that the exports of agrochemicals stood at Rs 43,223 crore in the 2022-23 fiscal. "India's Agrochemical exports outweigh the domestic consumption of the same. The Indian exports by agrochemical industry have witnessed commendable growth in recent times," said the report which was released at the 7th AGM of ACFI held recently. ACFI said that the government must focus on facilitating a conducive environment which includes streamlining licencing norms and improving infrastructure for storage and sale, incentivise biopesticide production, streamline registration process for new molecules, enter trade agreements with countries with more ..

Companies tapping younger workforce to bring senior colleagues up to date with GenAI, social media and consumer trends

Brokerages have downgraded earnings estimates for a few companies and expect only a gradual recovery over the next couple of quarters

Prices of corn, soybeans, and wheat are now at their lowest since Covid and are down 20-30 per cent Y-o-Y

The chemicals industry has been grappling with high inventory and destocking for the past few quarters, leading to continuous pressure on volume and margins, according to analysts

Higher demand and improved volumes are expected to help the companies liquidate excess inventory

India Pesticides is a chemical manufacturer engaged in agri chemicals business, primarily including manufacture, sale and distribution of insecticides, fungicides

Within agrochem, herbicides emerge as big export driver

Coromandel International, which is mainly in the fertiliser business, will invest Rs 1,000 crore to set up a plant to produce phosphoric and sulphuric acid at Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh. In a regulatory filing, the company said it has "commenced the project activity to set up its Phosphoric Acid-Sulphuric Acid complex facility at Kakinada". The company's Executive Chairman Arun Alagappan participated in the groundbreaking ceremony on April 26. "With an estimated outlay of Rs 1,000 crore, the project is expected to be commissioned in two years' time. The proposed 650 tonnes per day (tpd) phosphoric acid facility is designed with advanced DA-HF (Dihydrate Attack-Hemihydrate Filtration) process technology and automated DCS system," it said. This will enhance backward integration capacities and provide stable supplies of phosphoric acid for its fertiliser manufacturing by replacing more than 50 per cent of the Kakinada plant's imported acid requirement. The company also plans to set u