American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiary AMVAC Chemical Corporation, is an American producer of

agrochemical An agrochemical or agrichemical, a contraction of ''agricultural chemical'', is a chemical product used in industrial agriculture. Agrichemical refers to biocides ( pesticides including insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and nematicides) an ...

s and pesticide delivery systems. The company was cofounded by Glenn Wintemute, who stepped down as president in 1994. His son, Eric Wintemute, now serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. American Vanguard trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol "AVD." The company operates factories in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and

Axis, Alabama Axis is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Mobile County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 561, down from 757 at the 2010 census. It has a post office with the 36505 ZIP code. Th ...

. Products have included

dichlorvos Dichlorvos (2,2-dichlorovinyl dimethyl phosphate, commonly abbreviated as an DDVP) is an organophosphate widely used as an insecticide to control household pests, in public health, and protecting stored products from insects. The compound has bee ...

(DDVP),

metam sodium Metam sodium is an organosulfur compound with the formula . The compound is a sodium salt of a dithiocarbamate. The compound exists as a colorless dihydrate, but most commonly it is encountered as an aqueous solution. It is used as a soil fumiga ...

mevinphos Mevinphos is an organophosphate insecticide that acts as an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor to control insects in a wide range of crops. It is most commonly used for the control of chewing and sucking insects, as well as spider mites. Common s ...

pentachloronitrobenzene Pentachloronitrobenzene, typically abbreviated PCNB, is a registered fungicide formally derived from nitrobenzene. It is either an off-white or yellow solid, depending on its purity, with a musty odor. Preparation PCNB was originally synthesized ...

(PCNB) and

terbufos Terbufos is a chemical compound used in insecticides and nematicides. Terbufos is part of the chemical family of organophosphates. It is a clear, colourless to pale yellow or reddish-brown liquid and sold commercially as granulate. History Terb ...

History

In 1991, over 19,000 gallons of

manufactured by Amvac Chemical Corporation spilled from a train derailment into

Shasta Lake Shasta Lake, also popularly known as Lake Shasta, is a reservoir in Shasta County, California, United States. It began to store water in 1944 due to the impounding of the Sacramento River by Shasta Dam, the ninth tallest dam in the United State ...

. AMVAC settled resulting lawsuits for $2 million while

Southern Pacific Transportation Company The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials- SP) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the ...

paid $30 million in settlements. In 2001, AMVAC began producing the herbicide DCPA ( Dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate, trade name Dacthal) for the American market. In 2007, Amvac paid $300,000 in a pre-trial settlement with six workers who were exposed to pesticide dibromochloropropane ( DBCP) on a

Dole Food Company Dole plc (previously named Dole Food Company, Standard Fruit Company) is an Irish agricultural multinational corporation headquartered in Dublin, Ireland. The company is among the world's largest producers of fruit and vegetables, operating wit ...

-operated banana plantation in the 1970s. In 2017, the company acquired the US rights to

abamectin Abamectin is a widely used insecticide and anthelmintic. Abamectin, is a member of the Avermectin family and is a natural fermentation product of soil dwelling actinomycete ''Streptomyces avermitilis''. Abamectin (also called Avermectin B1), differ ...

Chlorothalonil Chlorothalonil (2,4,5,6-tetrachloroisophthalonitrile) is an organic compound mainly used as a broad spectrum, nonsystemic fungicide, with other uses as a wood protectant, pesticide, acaricide, and to control mold, mildew, bacteria, algae. Chlor ...

, and

paraquat Paraquat (trivial name; ), or ''N'',''N''′-dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridinium dichloride (systematic name), also known as methyl viologen, is an organic compound with the chemical formula C6H7N)2l2. It is classified as a viologen, a family of redox ...

from

ADAMA Agricultural Solutions ADAMA Ltd. (Hebrew: אדמה בע"מ ; Chinese: 安道麦), formerly known as Makhteshim-Agan, is a crop protection company. Overview Together with its wholly owned subsidiary, Adama Agricultural Solutions Ltd., ADAMA manufacturers and retails h ...

. In 2018, the company acquired the US and Canada

Bromacil Bromacil is an organic compound with the chemical formula C9H13BrN2O2, commercially available as a herbicide. Bromacil was first registered as a pesticide in the U.S. in 1961.United States Environmental Protection Agency. "Bromacil". 1996, p.1-1 ...

business from

Bayer Crop Science Bayer AG (, commonly pronounced ; ) is a German multinational corporation, multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company and one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. Headquartered in Leverkusen, Bayer's areas of busi ...

References

{{reflist Chemical companies of the United States