Agrium

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Agrium Inc.

Type	Public (NYSE: AGU, TSX: AGU)
Founded	1931
Headquarters	Calgary, AB, Canada
Key people	Michael M. Wilson, President & CEO
Industry	Agricultural
Employees	6,620
Website	http://www.agrium.com

Agrium Inc. (NYSE: AGU TSX: AGU) is a major Retail supplier of agricultural products and services in North and South America, a leading global Wholesale producer and marketer of all three major agricultural nutrients and the premier supplier of specialty fertilizers in North America through our Advanced Technologies business unit. Agrium’s strategy is to grow across the value chain through acquisition, incremental expansion of its existing operations and through the development, commercialization and marketing of new products and international opportunities.

Agrium was founded as Cominco Fertilizers, Ltd. in 1931 and changed its name to Agrium, Inc. in 1995. Agrium is headquartered in Calgary, Canada. Agrium U.S. Inc., a subsidiary company, is based in Denver, Colorado and is the location of Agrium's retail head office.

1 Divisions
2 Environmental and Social Impacts
3 References
4 External links

[edit] Divisions

Agrium operates through three segments:

[edit] Retail

The Retail segment offers farmers a complete range of seed, liquid and dry fertilizer products, along with primary crop protection services including herbicides, insecticides and fungicides. We now operate close to over 500 retail centres in the U.S. and South America.

[edit] Wholesale

The Wholesale segment provides nitrogen-based fertilizers, sulphur, and phosphate-based fertilizers. This segment also engages in the ownership and operation of potash mine and production facility at Vanscoy No. 345, Saskatchewan, Canada, and a phosphate mine in Kapuskasing, Ontario, Canada.

The Wholesale segment engages in the ownership and operation of nitrogen-based fertilizer plant in Bahia Blanca, Argentina and is constructing a new production Facility in Damietta, Egypt.

[edit] Agrium Advanced Technologies

The Agrium Advanced Technologies segment is at the forefront of environmentally friendly, controlled release fertilizer technologies. It produces micronutrients as well as specialty products for consumer, professional turf, horticulture and agricultural markets. Agrium has been a leading international supplier of specialty products for the agricultural market, where the company pioneered the development of cost-effective, controlled-release fertilizers in broad-acre crop applications. This segment markets its products through a network of distributors in Canada and the US.

[edit] Environmental and Social Impacts

Agrium has a questionable track record of social responsibility.

In 2006 the U.S. EPA fined ^[1] U.S.Agrium 750,000 for violations of the Clean Air Act. Un-permitted modifications to the Ohio nitrogen products plant resulted in excessive releases of NOx. The US EPA report states that these nitrogen oxides "cause severe respiratory problems, contribute to childhood asthma, acid rain, climate change, smog and haze, and impairs visibility in national parks. Emissions from nitric acid plants can be carried significant distances downwind, causing air quality problems..."

In 2003 Agrium was issued an administrative compliance order for excessive emissions at a Kennewick plant ^[2]. In 2005 Agrium was fined for failure to disclose release of toxic gases at this same plant ^[3] An Agrium ammonia/urea plant is listed by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation as a high priority contaminated site due to spillage of large amounts of ammonia and other contaminants ^[4].

The company is currently pursuing construction of a large fertilizer factory on the tourist island of Ras El-Bar, Egypt. The plant is expected to be the company's "lowest production cost" fertilizer factory ^[5] and is highly controversial ^[6]. The proposed site for the plant, is less than 6 km from the densely populated towns of Damietta raises concern over respiratory effects on local citizens from plant emissions. Additional environmental concerns also include impacts on fish in the Nile estuary, will draw large amounts of freshwater from estuarine fish nursery areas ^[7].

Since the region is home to half of Egypt's commercial fishing fleet ^[8] and a large local tourist industry adverse economic impacts to the local fishing and tourism economies through the plant's activities are anticipated. Several reports have alleged that the company had paid "kickbacks" ^[9] to win approval of the project ^[10].