Private company
Degesch
German chemical corporation
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Schädlingsbekämpfung mbH (transl. German Corporation for Pest Control) was a German chemical corporation which manufactured pesticides. Degesch held the patent on the infamous pesticide Zyklon, a variant of which was used to execute people in the gas chambers of German extermination camps during the Holocaust.2 It is part of IG Farben.1 Wikipedia text CC BY-SA 4.0
Last updated Oct 21, 2026.
Overview
- HeadquartersFrankfurt1
- Legal formGesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung3
- LEI3912002M708JS0OQN2883
- StatusActive3
- LEI statusIssued and current3
- Registered addressDr.-Werner-Freyberg-Strasse 11, 69514 Laudenbach, Germany3
- Registered withLocal Court Mannheim, HRB 4316093
See how the biggest companies compare on our leaderboards
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Schädlingsbekämpfung mbH (transl. German Corporation for Pest Control) was a German chemical corporation which manufactured pesticides. Degesch held the patent on the infamous pesticide Zyklon, a variant of which was used to execute people in the gas chambers of German extermination camps during the Holocaust. Through the firms Tesch & Stabenow GmbH (Testa) and Heerdt-Linger (Heli), Degesch sold the poisonous gas Zyklon B to the German Army and the Schutzstaffel (SS).2
Corporate structure
Degesch is part of a group headed by IG Farben. 384 entities, 54 countries on record. Switch between the flow chart and the network, and select any entity to see its details.
- IG Farben Frankfurt am Main
- Degesch Laudenbach, Germany
- Tesch & Stabenow Subsidiary · Hamburg
- ACNA Subsidiary · Cengio
- Agfa Camerawerk Subsidiary · Munich
- Agfa-Gevaert Subsidiary · Mortsel, Belgium
- Agfa HealthCare Canada Subsidiary · Waterloo, Canada
- Agfa-Gevaert (United States) Subsidiary · Goose Creek, United States
- Information International, Inc. Subsidiary · Los Angeles
- AGFA Subsidiary · Mortsel, Belgium
- AGFA FINANCE Subsidiary · Mortsel, Belgium
- AGFA FINCO Subsidiary · Mortsel, Belgium
- AGFA HEALTHCARE Subsidiary · Mortsel, Belgium
- Agfa-Gevaert (Belgium) Subsidiary · Belgium
- Agfa-Gevaert (Canada) Subsidiary · Canada
- American IG Subsidiary · New York City
- Ansco Subsidiary · Binghamton
- Apollo Subsidiary · Bratislava, Slovakia
- BASF Subsidiary · Ludwigshafen am Rhein, Germany
- BASF Praha, Czechia
- BASF (Canada) Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
- BASF AGRICULTURAL SOLUTIONS CANADA INC. Subsidiary · Ludwigshafen, Germany
- BASF COATINGS INC. Subsidiary · Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
- BASF (France) Paris, France
- BASF Antwerpen N.V. Antwerpen, Belgium
- BASF Polyurethanes Lemförde, Germany
- BASF Schwarzheide Schwarzheide, Germany
- BASF Schweiz AG Basel, Switzerland
- Surventis Münster, Germany
- BASF (China) Subsidiary · 上海, China
- BASF (Norway) Subsidiary · Oslo, Norway
- BASF (Switzerland) Subsidiary · Basel, Switzerland
- Verenium Corporation Subsidiary · San Diego
- Wintershall Subsidiary · Kassel, Germany
- Nitag Deutsche Treibstoffe Subsidiary · Berlin, Germany
- Nord Stream AG Subsidiary · Zug, Switzerland
- Gewerkschaft Wintershall Subsidiary · Germany
- Kali-Bank AG Eisenach Subsidiary · Germany
- Basf Finance Europe N.V. Subsidiary · 100% · Arnhem, Netherlands
- A.M. CRAIG LIMITED Subsidiary · Milton Keynes, United Kingdom
- Alsachimie S.A.S. Subsidiary · Chalampé, France
- B A S F SRL Subsidiary · Bucharest, Romania
- ba si fu dian chi cai liao (shang hai) you xian gong si (巴斯夫电池材料（上海）有限公司) Subsidiary · Shanghai, China
- BASF (Netherlands) Subsidiary
- BASF (United Kingdom) Subsidiary · United Kingdom
- BASF (United States) Subsidiary · Florham Park, United States
- BASF (БАСФ) Subsidiary · Sofia, Bulgaria
- BASF A/S Subsidiary · København V, Denmark
- BASF AB Subsidiary · Göteborg, Sweden
- BASF Agri Production SAS Subsidiary · Ecully Cedex, France
- and 116 more
- Bayer Subsidiary · Leverkusen, Germany
- Bayer (Australia) Pymble, Australia
- Bayer (New Zealand) Auckland, New Zealand
- Bayer Business Services Köln, Germany
- BAYER HEALTHCARE LLC Wilmington, Delaware, United States
- Bayer Schering Pharma Berlin, Germany
- Monsanto Saint Louis, Missouri, United States
- Cetus Corporation Subsidiary · Emeryville
- Delta & Pine Land Company Subsidiary · Scott
- G. D. Searle & Company Subsidiary · New York City
- Monsanto (Brazil) Subsidiary · São Paulo, Brazil
- Monsanto (India) Subsidiary · Mumbai, India
- Monsanto (United Kingdom) Subsidiary · Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Monsanto Canada Subsidiary · Winnipeg
- NutraSweet Subsidiary · Chicago
- Agracetus Subsidiary
- Seminis Vegetable Seeds, Inc. St. Louis, Missouri, United States
- Bayer (Belgium) Subsidiary · Machelen, Belgium
- Bayer (Canada) Subsidiary · Mississauga, Canada
- Bayer (Japan) Subsidiary · Tokyo, Japan
- Bayer Yakuhin, Ltd. Subsidiary · Osaka Prefecture, Japan
- Bayer (Netherlands) Subsidiary · Mijdrecht, Netherlands
- Bayer (United Kingdom) Subsidiary · Newbury, United Kingdom
- Bayer Technology Services Subsidiary · Leverkusen, Germany
- Bayer Türkiye Subsidiary
- Bayer USA Subsidiary · Robinson Township
- Currenta Subsidiary · Leverkusen, Germany
- Cutter Laboratories Subsidiary · Berkeley
- Dr. Scholl's Subsidiary · London
- H.C. Starck Subsidiary · München, Germany
- H.C. Starck Tungsten GmbH Subsidiary · Goslar, Germany
- Gebr. Borchers AG Subsidiary · Germany
- Hispania Bayer S.L. Subsidiary
- Jenapharm Subsidiary · Jena
- The Climate Corporation Subsidiary · San Francisco
- Viralgen Subsidiary · San Sebastián, Spain
- Covestro Stake · 7% · Leverkusen, Germany
- Covestro Barcelona, Spain
- Covestro LLC Wilmington, Delaware, United States
- Covestro (Belgium) Subsidiary · Antwerp
- Covestro (China) Subsidiary · Shanghai, People's Republic of China
- Covestro (India) Subsidiary · Ankleshwar, India
- Covestro (Italy) Subsidiary · Filago, Italy
- Covestro (Japan) Subsidiary · Amagasaki, Japan
- Covestro (Taiwan) Subsidiary · Kaohsiung, Taiwan
- Covestro (Thailand) Subsidiary · Map Ta Phut, Thailand
- bris'ath kho wes tor (prathesthiy) cakad (บริษัท โคเวสโตร (ประเทศไทย) จำกัด) Subsidiary · Rayong, Thailand
- Covestro Subsidiary · Antwerpen, Belgium
- Covestro (Australia) Subsidiary · Australia
- Covestro (France) Subsidiary · Fos-sur-Mer, France
- Covestro (Hong Kong) Limited Subsidiary · Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- COVESTRO (INDIA) PRIVATE LIMITED Subsidiary · Thane, India
- Covestro (Netherlands) B.V. Subsidiary · Geleen, Netherlands
- Covestro Deutschland AG Subsidiary · Leverkusen, Germany
- 1 more
- Covestro Elastomers Subsidiary · Romans-sur-Isère, France
- Covestro Finance GmbH Subsidiary · Leverkusen, Germany
- COVESTRO INDUSTRIA E COMERCIO DE POLIMEROS LTDA Subsidiary · Sao Paulo, Brazil
- COVESTRO INTERNATIONAL RE, INC. Subsidiary · South Burlington, Vermont, United States
- Covestro International SA Subsidiary · Fribourg, Switzerland
- COVESTRO PO LLC Subsidiary · Proctor, West Virginia, United States
- COVESTRO POLIMER ANONIM SIRKETI (COVESTRO POLİMER ANONİM ŞİRKETİ) Subsidiary · Ataşehir, Turkey
- COVESTRO SA DE CV Subsidiary · Mexico City, Mexico
- and 9 more
- Adverio Pharma GmbH Subsidiary · Leverkusen, Germany
- and 111 more
- Behringwerke Subsidiary · Marburg
- Buna Werke Subsidiary · Merseburg
- Deutsche Länderbank Subsidiary · Berlin, Germany
- DK Recycling und Roheisen GmbH Subsidiary · Duisburg, Germany
- Donau Chemie Subsidiary · Wien, Austria
- Donau Carbon GmbH Subsidiary · Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- DONAUCHEM GmbH Subsidiary · Wien, Austria
- DONAUCHEM s.r.o. Subsidiary · 67.5% · Nymburk, Czechia
- Gasolin Subsidiary · Hanover
- Interhandel Subsidiary
- Leuna works Subsidiary · Leuna
- Pulverfabrik Rottweil Subsidiary · Rottweil, Germany
- Wagenmann & Seybel Subsidiary · Vienna, Austria
- WASAG Subsidiary · Coswig, Germany
- H.A. Meyer & Riemann Chemische Werke Subsidiary · Germany
- WCM AG Subsidiary · Berlin, Germany
- Salzgitter Klöckner-Werke Subsidiary · Salzgitter, Germany
- HSP Hoesch Spundwand und Profil Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung Subsidiary · Dortmund, Germany
- Klöckner Eisen Subsidiary · Germany
- Klöckner-Werke AG Eisen und Stahlwerk Kneuttingen Subsidiary · France
- Salzgitter Klöckner-Werke Subsidiary · Salzgitter, Germany
- Württembergische Cattunmanufaktur Subsidiary · Heidenheim an der Brenz, Germany
- Braunkohlenwerke Bruckdorf Subsidiary · Germany
- Deutsche Grube Subsidiary · Germany
- Guano Works Subsidiary · Germany
- I.G. Bergwerke Subsidiary · Germany
- and 1 more
- Degesch Laudenbach, Germany
Built from parent and subsidiary links from GLEIF, the Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (CC0); subsidiaries, stakes and holdings from Wikidata (CC0); major holders from Schedules 13D and 13G. Each entity in the chart links to its source.
What it owns
What Degesch reports owning in its annual reports to the SEC: buildings, land and equipment, real estate and locations, investments, intangible assets and inventory, at the end of its latest fiscal year and a year before.
Stakes and holdings (Wikidata)
Things Wikidata records the company as owning, with the share when stated.1
Products and brands
- Zyklon B
Listed on Wikidata.1
Subsidiaries and ownership
Parent company
Subsidiaries
From Wikidata.1
Controversies and legal
Prosecution
During the IG Farben trial the director of Degesch, Gerhard Friedrich Peters, implicated himself. He received information by Kurt Gerstein about the murder of people using Zyklon and was informed that the German army needed the gas without the usual additives that were added to warn people by smell of its poisonous nature (the Zyklon B variant).
In 1949, Peters was charged with murder in the court of Frankfurt and convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment. The conviction was in 1952, legally confirmed in an appeal and set to six years. Peters went to prison but was acquitted in a new appeal in 1953. The law had changed; he was no longer considered guilty in assisting in murder. The chairman of the board of directors from 1939 to 1945, Hermann Schlosser, was arrested in February 1948, and acquitted in April 1948; later he took another job as chairman of the board.
The owner of Tesch & Stabenow, Bruno Tesch, and its director Karl Weinbacher were convicted and sentenced to death by a British tribunal and executed in Hamelin Prison on 16 May 1946. An employee Joachim Drosihn was acquitted.
In 1979, Testa, which was newly founded after the war, merged with Heerdt-Lingler GmbH (HeLi) with the financial participation of Degesch.
From Wikipedia’s article on Degesch, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4
Timeline
- 1919Founded Founded1
Links
Sources
The numbers on this page point here. Each one links to the record it came from.
- 1WikidataDegesch on Wikidata
- 2WikipediaDegesch on Wikipedia
- 3
- 4WikipediaDegesch on Wikipedia (revision used)
- 5Wikimedia CommonsDegesch photo by USHMM, courtesy of National Archives, Public domain