Terneuzen, the Netherlands – 10 April, 2024 - Dow (NYSE: DOW) has today announced that Terneuzen and Dordrecht, two of its major manufacturing locations in the Netherlands, are now OCS certified within Europe. This marks an important milestone for Dow, with the two facilities becoming the first certified pellet producers in the Netherlands to achieve this sustainability
certification following an extensive audit by an independent body. Dow is progressing with thirdparty OCS certifications to ensure all European sites are certified by the end of 2024.
The OCS Europe certification scheme was developed in consultation with industry experts, trade associations, NGOs, policy makers and certification bodies. It is designed to ensure and document the compliance of companies throughout the entire plastics supply chain, with requirements on the prevention of the loss of plastic pellets, powders and flakes to the environment. Achieving OCS certification highlights Dow’s longstanding efforts to reduce and eliminate pellet spills, as part of its endeavors to tackle plastic pollution within the industry more broadly.
Dow has been a longtime partner in Operation Clean Sweep, engaging with the OCS program for years by training employees and value chain stakeholders on the importance of zero-pellet loss operations, finding solutions to potential pellet waste, and consistently initiating projects and improvements focused on minimizing pellet loss.
Beyond sites in the Netherlands, Dow’s facilities worldwide are also active participants in OCS, including education efforts for employees, value chain partners and customers on the awareness and accountability for pellet loss prevention, containment and clean-up. Dow initiatives such as ‘Every Pellet Counts’ - an internal campaign launched in 2023 - have been particularly important in raising awareness of, and finding solutions for, plastic loss during the production, loading, transportation, and processing stages of a product lifecycle.
Marco ten Bruggencate, EMEA commercial vice president for Packaging and Specialty Plastics commented: “It is with great pride that Terneuzen and Dordrecht, two major locations in the Netherlands, have become the first Dow sites in Europe to achieve the prestigious OCS certification. This is an important moment for us, recognizing our continued commitment to driving
the transformational change needed to create a more sustainable future for our industry”.
About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) is one of the world’s leading materials science companies, serving customers in high-growth markets such as packaging, infrastructure, mobility and consumer applications. Our global breadth, asset integration and scale, focused innovation, leading business positions and commitment to sustainability enable us to achieve profitable growth and help deliver a sustainable future. We operate manufacturing sites in 31 countries and employ approximately 35,900 people. Dow delivered sales of approximately $45 billion in 2023. References to Dow or the Company mean Dow Inc. and its subsidiaries. Learn more about us and our ambition to be the most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world by visiting www.dow.com.
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For further information, please contact:
Judith Hicks (Dow)
+41 44 728 2319
jchicks@dow.com