The cornerstone of Dole's environmental policies is our Research Department, active in continuously finding new techniques to protect the environment in which Dole and its suppliers grow products.

Since 1965, Dole's Research Department has implemented numerous projects to improve product quality and reduce potential risks to workers and the environment. Dole employs more than 50 scientists in 5 research centers in Latin America, the Philippines and the United States. These scientists specialize in fields ranging from general agronomy, irrigation, nematology, plant pathology, physiology, horticulture/plant propagation, spray technology and post-harvest physiology to biotechnology.

Dole's scope of research covers many areas, including disease, nematode and insect control, substitutes for nematicides and insecticides, cultivation techniques, new irrigation systems, fruit care and fruit handling in the field and post harvest, as well as solid waste disposal.