Chemical Weapons were first used in battle during the 2nd Battle of the Ypres Salient in the spring of 1915. The heavy bombardment that occurred during the battle so devastated the region's chalky soil that nearly all vegetation was destroyed. The lone exception was the field poppy, which sprouted abundantly over the grim landscape.

The sight of the these red flowers growing amid such destruction moved Lt. Col. John McCrae to write In Flanders Fields, one of the famous poems about World War I. This poem soon established the poppy as a universally recognized symbol of remembrance of soldiers lost in battle.

In recognition of the first victims of these terrible weapons, E-Z-EM has incorporated the image of the poppy into its logo for RSDL.