Dow’s Dursban Deception

Dow has been accused of making deceptive claims to protect its Dursban profits and conceal the pesticide’s horrific side effects. In 1995, for instance, Dow was fined $732,000 for not sending the EPA its reports on 249 Dursban poisoning incidents.

In 2003, Dow agreed to pay $2 million – the largest penalty ever in a pesticide case – to the state of New York. The state had filed suit against Dow for repeatedly violating a 1994 agreement that prohibited advertising that touted the safety of its pesticide products. However, an investigation found that almost immediately after the company entered into the agreement, it once again began to make misleading safety claims in its print, video and internet advertising.

Outside the U.S., Dow continues to market Dursban as safe. In Iran for example, Dow’s sales literature claims Dursban has “an established record of safety regarding humans and pets.” Since its June 2000 phase-out in the U.S., Dow has aggressively marketed Dursban in India as a safe household chemical.