Dow Chemical

Dow Chemical is a US multinational chemical company that offers a broad range of products and services to customers in more than 175 countries. Products include food and pharmaceuticals. Dow has annual sales of around $49 billion and employs 43,000 people worldwide.

The company's vision is "To be the largest, most profitable, and most respected chemical company in the world".

Dow Chemicals is an active member of the American Chemistry Council, and an active partner in different programs and initiatives in both the World Bank and United Nations.

Joint ventures

Dow has joint ventures with the following companies:

Compañía Mega, S.A. Dow Corning Corporation EQUATE Petrochemical Co. K.S.C. Equipolymers MEGlobal Univation Technologies

Subsidiaries

Dow also has a number of subsidiaries, including:

• Union Carbide Corporation
• Dow AgroSciences LLC

Dow AgroSciences is a global leader in providing pest management, agricultural seed and biotechnology products. Dow AgroSciences has approximately 5,500 people in more than 50 countries dedicated to its business, and has worldwide sales of US $3.4 billion.

Dow Agrosciences UK is part of Dow AgroSciences and develops and manufactures products in the following areas Cereals Grassland Oilseed Rape Potatoes Sugar Beet Fruit Crop Vegetables Forage Maize Non-food Crops Non-crop Pests

Pesticides

Chlorpyrifos was until 2000 one of the most widely used household pesticide in the US. However, chlorpyrifos is also a nerve toxin and suspected endocrine disruptor and has been associated with carcinogenicity, reproductive and developmental toxicity, and acute toxicity.

In 1995, the US Environmental Protection Agency fined the company $732,000 for not sending the EPA reports concerning 249 Chlorpyrifos poisoning incidents. In June 2000, the company withdrew their registration of chlorpyrifos for use in homes and other places where children might be exposed, and restricted its use on crops. It continues to be marketed in developing countries, such as India, where sales literature claims it has "an established record of safety regarding humans and pets."

In 2003, the company paid a $2 million fine to the state of New York. This was imposed due to the company's illegal advertising of Chlorpyrifos as "safe". ^[1]

Agent Orange

Dow, along with Monsanto, supplied the US military with Agent Orange during the Vietnam war. This is a chemical defoliant which contains dioxin. Suring the war, dioxin from the defoliant found its way into the food chain and was linked to an increase in birth defects among Vietnamese people. In 2005, a lawsuit was filed by Vietnamese victims of Agent Orange against Dow and Monsanto. The companies argued that no link has been proved between Agent Orange and the alleged health problems and also that the companies could not be held responsible for the manner in which their products were used. ^[2] The lawsuit was dismissed. ^[3] In 2006, a court in South Korea ordered Dow and Monsanto to compensate South Korean veterans of the Vietnam War and their families for Agent Orange-related injuries. ^[4]

Board of directors

Current members of the board of directors of the Company are:

• Arnold Allemang
• Professor Jacqueline Barton
• James A. Bell
• Jeff Fettig
• Barbara Franklin
• Andrew N. Liveris
• Geoffery E. Merszei
• James Ringler
• Ruth Shaw
• Paul Stern

Finances

In 2005 the company has operating profits of $5.4 billion ^[5] In 2005 sales were $46.3 billion. In 2006 first-quarter net earnings were $1.2 billion. The company currently spends around $1 bilion per annum in R&D.

References

1. ^http://www.pan-uk.org/pestnews/issue/pn67/pn67p18a.htm
2. ^ Agent Orange lawsuit opens in US. BBC (March 1, 2005).
3. ^ US won't compensate Vietnam's Agent Orange victims: official. Todayonline.com (June 6, 2006).
4. ^ Court rules against U.S. firms on Agent Orange. MSNBC (Jan 26, 2006).
5. ^ "Top 50 Chemical Producers", Chemical and Engineering News, Vol. 84, Issue 20 (May 15, 2006), pp 10-15