Dow AgroSciences China sets up headquarter in Nantong

Dow AgroSciences, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company and one of the world's top five agrochemical companies, entered Chinese market in the 1970s as the first batch of foreign companies investing in China.

After more than 30 years of development in China, Dow AgroSciences is now able to annually rake in 100 million US dollars of sales revenues from China. Though having set foothold in China for years, the agrichemical company did not set up its China headquarter until May this year when Dow AgroSciences China Ltd. decided to make its pesticide manufacturing joint venture Nantong DAS Chemical Co., Ltd. as a headquarter. It is by no means a rash decision as the US-based company had observed the plant as well as China's investment environment for nearly 10 years.

DAS Chemical Co., Ltd. was established in 2001 and since then the plant has been engaged in production of Dithane M-45, a heavyweight pesticide product of Dow AgroSciences. Within 10 years, the joint venture grew to be a leading Dithane M-45 supplier to Asia, Europe and Africa partly because of China's sound investment environment.This also renders the parent company The Dow Chemical to make a decision to gear up investment in the joint venture in 2010. "It is sound investment and promising outlook here that attract us most and we will definitely boost our investment in China," said LaRoza Jorge, president of Dow AgroSciences Asia Region in May.

By far, the production capacity of Nantong DAS Chemical Co., Ltd. has been expanded to 700 metric tons (tonnes) per month from the previous 450 tonnes. Dow AgroSciences also plans to expand both production and R&D capacities in Nantong DAS Chemical in 2011. In the past dozens of years, AgroSciences built partnership with scores of research institutes and universities in the research and development of agrichemical products.

In China, AgroSciences focuses on combining the power of science and technology with the "Human Element" to constantly improve what is essential to human progress, as what it states on the website. It can be seen from the fact that the management level of the Dow AgroSciences China Ltd. is fully consisted of Chinese people. China is now Dow Chemical's second-largest market behind the US, but the country has the potential to equal the market within next five years, said Andrew N. Liveris, chairman and chief executive officer of the company earlier to media.