Legacy Voice: Edgard Chow’s Journey from Latin America Growth to Global Innovation

In celebration of Kuraray’s centennial, our final installment in our #LegacyVoices series, @Kuraray America (KAI) highlights Edgard Chow, Director of Technical Opportunity Management with our Kuraray Innovation Networking Center (INC).

For 23 years, Edgard has connected technical expertise with customer needs, bringing the barrier performance of EVAL™ EVOH resin into areas ranging from food packaging to agriculture and waste-management applications. 

Building a Career with EVAL 
In 2002, Edgard joined Kuraray to help establish the EVAL business in Latin America. His first decade was spent developing and growing customer relationships across Colombia, Brazil, and Argentina, and lifting regional volume tenfold, from 600 tons to 6,000 tons.

In 2020, he became EVAL’s Technical Service & Development (TS&D) Director, leading the TS&D organization at Kuraray Research & Technical Center (KRTC) in Pasadena, TX. Under his leadership, the KRTC lab team supported the work that helped EVAL™ EVOH resin earn the APR Design® Recognition for recyclability in 2025.

In March 2026, Edgard transitioned to  his current role with INC. In this role, he acts as the technical liaison between leadership, marketing and incubation to accelerate innovations to the market

For People and the Planet 
Edgard was a critical member of a 5-year research project focused on high barrier mulching films using EVAL™ EVOH resin. The project brought together a direct customer, a chemical producer, the USDA, and California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation to study the films impact in agricultural applications.

The findings showed that EVAL™ EVOH TIF (“Totally” [mulching] impermeable film) can enable up to a 50% reduction in fumigant dose without compromising crop yield of quality. The U.S. EPA also incentivizes the use of TIF, offering the highest buffer zone credits to farmers with arable land near residential subdivisions and commercial buildings.

For Edgard, the project’s lasting impact extended beyond the research itself. It demonstrated how collaboration, innovation and science-based solutions can help address real-world challenges in ways that benefit both people and the planet.

Breaking Ground in New Industries 
Today, Edgard is bringing his ambition into new territory, with waste management at the top of his list.
Working alongside colleagues at EVAL Europe, and key partners in the U.S. including Chevron and the Geosynthetics Institute, his team built a proof of concept for EVAL™ EVOH resin in geomembranes and waste-management applications. The work supported a recently issued industry standard, and as a landfill cover, EVOH geomembranes give landfill operators a workable answer in reducing neighbor odor complaints related to oxygen infiltration and odiferous gas emissions.

Giving Back
Edgard has been actively involved with the Institute of Food Technologies (IFT) community. He volunteers as an instructor, teaching food scientists and technologists about packaging materials and barrier technologies all while supporting the organization’s food bank mission.
“Education is critical to help people understand the role packaging plays in food safety, preservation, and sustainability,” he says. 

Looking Ahead 
His advice for whoever comes next at KAI is grounded. Study the market. Know the products.
“Passion is contagious. Bring it to the work, and people come with you on what you’re building,” he says.