Essay on Soy DRI Essays

Essay on Soy DRI Essays Essay on Soy DRI Essay Essay on Soy DRI Essay Soy DRI Behavioral Simulation The Soy-DRI behavioral simulation was designed with the goal of improving student skills, confidence, practice, and efficacy with respect to ethical decision making. The simulation centers on a product misuse allegation and the pending broadcast of an investigative report examining the case. To complicate the situation, the CEO is out of town and has given decision authority to a group of five to seven employees. Specifically, Soy-DRI involves a firm that manufactures three products, all soybean derivatives, and markets them to three distinct target markets. The students’ recommendations and discussion should involve issues related to evaluating packaging, labeling, pricing, product color, and consistency issues in the short- to mid-term, as well as whether a product recall should be implemented. More mid- to long-range issues should involve the manner in which information is provided from distributors and retailers back to the manufacturer. In addition, the need to implement a comprehensive ethics and compliance program for all Soy-DRI employees and customers should be evaluated. New risk areas have emerged with this recent issue, and they need to be addressed with all employees. Two former employees of a large chemical manufacturer founded Soy-DRI (Soybean Derivative Research Initiatives) in 1985. One of the company’s product lines consists of three soy-based powders with additives to enhance their moisture-absorbing properties. The products are used to absorb and eliminate excess moisture in a variety of consumer and organizational settings. In their powdered form, Soy-DRI products can absorb as much as ten times their weight in moisture. The products are environmentally friendly, a critical value of Soy-DRI. The company has been acknowledged for accomplishments in the area of environmental sensitivity. Initially, Soy-DRI targeted the industrial market with the Slab-Dri brand. Slab-Dri is marketed primarily to commercial establishments for the purpose of eliminating moisture and oil from paved surfaces. The product soaks up spills and can then be swept dry. The product is white to enhance its visibility and ease of removal. Slab-Dri is distributed in 64-ounce tin containers with adjustable lids for application. The retail price of Slab-Dri is $2 per 64-ounce container, with a product cost of $l.50. The product is available to industrial buyers through catalogs and, more recently, through AutoZone, Discount Auto Parts, and other consumer automotive outlets. Slab-Dri has generated the company’s second highest sales levels. In 1990, Soy-DRI expanded its product line with two new products targeted at distinctly different end users. The first of these new products is Pet-Dri, which is used in pet litter boxes to facilitate moisture and odor absorption. Pet-Dri has the same formula tion as Slab-Dri, but the product is beige so that it blends with other pet litter products. The product is available in a 32-ounce plastic container with an adjustable lid for application. Pet-Dri is distributed through major discount stores such as Wal-Mart, Target, Kmart, and supermarkets. The suggested retail price is $4 per 32-ounce container, with a product cost of $1.25. Pet-Dri has become Soy-DRI’s best-selling product. The final derivative product is Baby-Dri, which is used in place of traditional baby power. As a relatively new addition to Soy-DRI’s product line, Baby-Dri has the lowest sales. Because tests of Soy-DRI’s first two products indicated that their high moisture absorption properties cause rashes and irritate babies’ skin with prolonged use, Baby-Dri’s moisture-absorbing properties were modified to make it absorb five times its weight in moisture. Baby-Dri is also purified to meet federal regulations for consumers’ personal use. The product is white in color, the same as Slab-Dri. Baby-Dri is sold in 8-ounce plas tic containers for a suggested retail price of $4, with a product cost of $2. Baby-Dri is distributed through major discount chains such as Target, Wal-Mart, Kmart, Toys R’ Us, supermarkets, and baby supply stores throughout the country.