Kathleen M. Bader has been named chairman, president and CEO of Cargill Dow LLC. A 50/50 joint venture between The Dow Chemical Company and Cargill Incorporated, Cargill Dow represents one of the most significant investments in new business growth and green chemistry for both companies. The joint venture manufactures and markets the world’s first commercially viable resin made from renewable resources – the dextrose from corn.

“Putting a leader with Kathleen’s experience in place at Cargill Dow is a sign of our commitment to being a leader in the development of sustainable products,” said Andrew N. Liveris, president and chief operating officer, Dow. “Cargill Dow has been a tremendous technical success. The immediate challenge is to turn these achievements into commercial success.”

F. Guillaume Bastiaens, vice chairman, Cargill, adds, “Kathleen has been part of the Cargill Dow business from the very beginning. Her in-depth knowledge of both Cargill Dow and the global plastics marketplace will accelerate Cargill Dow’s growth.”

Bader was one of the original architects of Cargill Dow and has served on the company’s Members Committee since its formation. In addition to her role on Cargill Dow, Bader will continue to be a member of the International Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity; a member of U.S. Secretary Tom Ridge’s Homeland Security Advisory Committee; and chair of the Department of Homeland Security’s Private Sector Senior Advisory Committee. She will also continue to be a member of the Dean's Council at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Bader joined Dow in 1973 in the Chicago sales office. Throughout her 30-year career she has held numerous sales, marketing, operations and business management jobs in Dow’s global and North America operations. In December 1999 she was named corporate vice president, Quality and Business Excellence, and led Dow’s successful implementation of Six Sigma. In May 2000, she was given additional responsibilities as business group president, Styrenics and Engineered Products, a $4 billion business portfolio. For the past three years, she has served as a member of Dow’s Executive Management Team, Human Resources Committee, Capital Allocation Committee, and the Research and Development Portfolio Management Team.

Bader earned a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts from Saint Mary’s College/Notre Dame, attending Loyola University of Rome, Italy her junior year, and holds a master’s degree in business administration from the University of California at Berkeley.

Founded in 1997, Cargill Dow LLC is based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, USA. It is the first company to offer its customers a family of polymers derived entirely from annually renewable resources with the cost and performance necessary to compete with packaging materials and traditional fibers. The company has achieved this breakthrough by applying its unique technology to the processing of natural plant sugars to create a proprietary polylactide polymer.