BASF manufactures and donates hand sanitizer

BASF Hand Sanitizer. PHOTO: BASF Canada

MISSISSAUGA, Ont. – April 23, chemical manufacturer BASF announced that the company has started production of hand sanitizers in Canada.

Manufactured at BASF’s Windsor, Ont., facility, the hand sanitizers will be donated to hospitals, care facilities and other institutions, identified in collaboration with the provincial governments of Quebec, Ontario and Alberta.

Between the amount of hand sanitizer produced in Canada and imported from BASF’s Wyandotte, Michigan, facility, the company expects to donate more than 10,000 litres over the next week and will assess future production and supply in the near term.

“We have considered how our businesses and local footprint could positively respond to these challenges and support those who are particularly in need now and in the immediate future: healthcare facilities and essential service professionals,” said Marcelo Lu, president of BASF Canada, in a prepared statement. “I am proud of our Canadian colleagues for their fast response to the crisis. They worked diligently and in close collaboration with Health Canada, other government departments, and our supplying partners to obtain approvals and pivot our production to hand sanitizers.”

BASF’s Windsor site, where the hand sanitizer is being produced, is a coatings supplier in several automotive OEM and refinish applications. “Given the slower demand from the automotive sector, we were happy to adjust and contribute to the fight against COVID-19,” said Jeff Klevering, site director for the Windsor facility.

In the past weeks, BASF Canada has also donated other key supplies to the healthcare sector across Canada such as disinfectants, hand soap, masks, gloves and protective suits.

Globally, BASF Group currently supplies around 175,000 litres of hand sanitizer weekly free of charge and has recently donated over 100 million protective masks.