Use of DBCP and Relation to Infertility

Use of DBCP and relation to infertility
Dow produced DBCP (1,2-dibromo-3-chloropropane), a soil fumigant, and nematicide, which was sold under the names the Nemagon and Fumazone until the late 1970s. US banned DBCP in 1979 after it was linked to human sterility in California. But, Dow and three other companies continued producing the hazardous pesticide DBCP for years after it was banned and exported it to developing countries.
Animal testing had revealed that the product caused male sterility in rats and the companies knew about it at least since the 1960s, but concealed this information. They also neglected to report the related findings of reduced sperm and atrophied testicles of rabbits and monkeys in the information submitted for registration and labeling. DBCP had no labels warning that it was extremely toxic and no instructions on the use of safety equipment during its marketing in the developing countries.
One study found that approximately 20-25 % of the male working population in banana plantations on Costa Rica’s Atlantic coast, where workers had mixed DBCP by hand, was sterilized through occupational exposure to DBCP. Dow continued to ship DBCP to Dole Food Co. for use on banana plantations in Latin America. It caused permanent sterility of thousands of workers of banana plantations who subsequently sued both the companies.
Human Testing of Dursban
Chlorpyrifos is a nerve toxin and suspected endocrine disruptor that has been widely used in US homes. It is reported to cause 7,000 accidents every year. In 1998, Dow tested Dursban on 60 paid recruits at a lab in Lincoln, Nebraska and also fed Dursban to inmates at Clinton Correctional Institute, New York, in 1972 to assess its effects on humans. Such type of studies and...

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...se making the basic ingredients for grocery bags and plastic pipe, it is not because of an awakened conscience but because of low profit margins. This shows that Dow operates with the sole purpose of making profits and does not stop to think at what cost it is achieving that. In corporate world, businesses exist to make profit, but the ethical nature of those businesses should be considered.
Dow’s actions over the past 100 years force us to think about the importance of ethical practices and their existence not only in organizational rulebook but in reality. The top management will have to lead the ethical practices for enforcing them in the organization at all levels. The judiciary can also start by handing out the long-awaited justices to the victims. Only a conscious and directed effort can lead to the survival of ethical business practices in the organizations.