Agent Orange
Agent Orange was a herbicide used in Vietnam to defoliate trees and remove cover for the enemy. Agent Orange spraying missions were flown in Vietnam between January 1965 and April 1970. Shipped in orange-striped barrels, it was a reddish-brown liquid containing four chemicals: 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T), 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), cacodylic acid and picloram. The 2,4,5-T was contaminated in the manufacturing process with dioxin. Several herbicides were sprayed in Vietnam at different times—during different years as well as during different seasons because of the variety of vegetation and environmental conditions.
The history of herbicides for military use dates to World War II. During the early part of the war, interest arose in chemicals that could be used for crop destruction. Two chemicals were developed as a result of those early efforts -- 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T. Although neither chemical was used in World War II, the value of their use in weed and brush programs was recognized, and both chemicals have been used widely throughout the world since the 1940s by farmers, foresters and homeowners.
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