ABOUT MARKETS PRODUCTS RESPONSIBILITY CAREERS INVESTORS CONTACT SEARCH HISTORY At Oil-Dri, our past drives our future. As our organization grows, we find value in reflecting on the milestones that have led us to where we are today. Scroll down to experience highlights from our history and to learn about the people, discoveries and events that have contributed to our success. 2020 2020 During the Covid-19 global pandemic nationwide shutdown, the vast majority of Oil-Dri’s business is deemed essential and continues manufacturing operations to provide materials for food production, pet care, sanitation and animal health. These products are sold to essential businesses such as grocery stores and food processing plants that rely on Oil-Dri for their continuing operations. 2019 Oil-Dri implements robust S&OP/IBP disciplines with a new product development pipeline. Headed up by COO Molly VandenHeuvel,Oil-Dri’s new product development process is designed to improve the success rate of developing new products. 2018 Oil-Dri CFO Susan Kreh and the entire Oil-Dri team successfully launch an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) process to manage and integrate key parts of the business such as planning, purchasing, inventory, sales, marketing, finance, human resources, and more with a single system. 2016 The annual We Care award was renamed to the Al Swerdlik award after one of the Oil-Dri’s founding teammates who exemplified the Company’s founding principles. 2016 In promotion of Cat’s Pride® Fresh & Light Ultimate Care,® a partnership was formed with Katherine Heigl, award-winning actress and CEO of The Jason Debus Heigl Foundation.™ We are proud that a portion of every sale of Fresh & Light Ultimate Care products assists the foundation and its mission to end animal cruelty. 2016 Oil-Dri received patents for a variety of lightweight scoopable cat litter formulations. 2016 Oil-Dri celebrated its 75th anniversary of business. 2015 The Industrial & Automotive Products Group launched its Snow & Go™ Winter Traction Aid product. 2015 Amlan International launched two new natural growth promotion products, Varium™ for Poultry and NeoPrime™ for post-weaning piglets. 2014 Oil-Dri was again nominated by a teammate and was named as one of The Chicago Tribune’s Top 100 Workplaces. 2014 A grand opening was held for Oil-Dri’s Chinese subsidiary, Amlan Trading (Shenzhen) Company, Ltd. in Shenzhen, China. 2013 The Ripley production facility celebrated its 50th anniversary. 2013 Oil-Dri purchased the clay cat litter business assets of MFM Industries, Inc. in Ocala, Florida. 2013 Nominated by Oil-Dri teammates, the Company earned the highest ranking and special award for ethical standards among the Chicago Tribune‘s Top 100 Workplaces for companies. (Press Release: 11-23-13) 2012 The Chicago Tribune named Oil-Dri one of the city’s Top 100 Workplaces in the small business category. 2011 The Blue Mountain production facility expanded in order to support the launch of Cat’s Pride® Fresh & Light.® 2011 Oil-Dri and Cat’s Pride Fresh & Light won Walmart’s Responsibility Award. 2011 Cat’s Pride® Fresh & Light.® brand of lightweight cat litters was launched and revolutionized the cat litter industry. 2010 2009 1 2 3 4 Previous Next Amlan® International was established as Oil-Dri’s animal health business and launched Calibrin® products. 2009 1 2 3 Previous Next A new plant was constructed in Ripley, Mississippi for the production of new innovative chemical and biological carrier technology, Verge® engineered granules. 2009 Milestone: Sales hit $232,000,000. 2003 Oil-Dri began annual dividend increases for both classes of stock. 2002 1 2 3 Previous Next Oil-Dri acquired the Jonny Cat® brand of pet care products, manufacturing facility and mineral reserves in Taft, California. 2001 1 2 Previous Next Oil-Dri developed a new mission statement, “Creating Value From Sorbent Minerals.” All product lines were expanded with a focus on value-added products. Oil-Dri acquired Pro’s Choice Sports Field Products®. The Ochlocknee, Georgia facility was expanded to support a growing demand for Pure-Flo® bleaching earths. 2000 1999 Milestone: Sales hit $174,000,000. 1999 Oil-Dri introduced Scoop ‘N Flush™ and DustStopper™ cat litters, made with recycled paper. 1998 The Company acquired American Colloid’s facility and mineral rights in Mounds, Illinois. 1996 The Company introduced Cat’s Pride® scoopable cat litter and Cat’s Pride® KatKit® disposable cat litter trays to the pet care market in the United States. 1995 Oil-Dri was named the first-ever recipient of the National Family Business of the Year Award. 1995 Dan Jaffee took over as President and Chief Operating Officer. EARLY 1990’S 1 2 Previous Next The Saular KatKit® was introduced and sold in Canada. EARLY 1990’S Milestone: Sales reached $94 million; earnings topped $7 million. 1993 Oil-Dri was listed on the New York Stock Exchange on December 20, 1993 with the ticker ODC. 1993 Oil-Dri’s executive headquarters moved to Chicago’s historic Wrigley Building at 410 North Michigan Avenue, where it operates today. EARLY 1990’S The Company acquired Industrial Environmental Products, Inc., and entered the polypropylene sorbents market with Oil-Dri Lite™ Sorbents. 1991 Oil-Dri celebrates its 50th year in business. 1991 1 2 Previous Next The Nick Jaffee Center for Innovation was was built and opened in Vernon Hills, Illinois. The state-of-the-art scientific campus houses an extensive laboratory, pilot plant and 26 teammates. Oil-Dri’s Animal Health business was established. Pel-Unite Plus Pelleting Aid was added to the product offerings. 1980 1989 Dan Jaffee packed-up his car with a license plate that read “OILDRI” and drove to Laval, Canada. He managed the Canadian facility full-time for one year and then began commuting back and forth from Chicago. 1988 The plant in Ripley, Mississippi underwent a major expansion to handle increased demand for Agsorb.® 1988 New packaging was designed for Cat’s Pride® with an endorsement from the American Humane Association. 1989 Oil-Dri acquired Ami-Dri Corporation’s production facility and reserves and established the Blue Mountain Production Company, a Mississippi facility focusing on cat litter production. The Company expanded sales to mass merchandisers. 1989 Milestone: Sales hit $83,000,000 1987 Daniel “Dan” Jaffee started his full-time career at Oil-Dri. 1986 1 2 Previous Next Oil-Dri introduced new fluids purification products: Pure-Flo® to the edible oil market and Ultra-Clear® to the jet fuel clarification market. These products are produced at a dedicated fine powders plant in Ochlocknee, Georgia. 1985 In conjunction with a secondary stock offering, Class B Stock was established. Retained by the founding family, Class B Stock has 10 votes per share. In return, Class B stock receives a 25% lower dividend. The purpose of this change in capital structure was to ensure a longer-term view for the benefit of all stockholders. 1985 The acquisition of a production plant owned by Anschutz Mineral became Oil-Dri Corporation of Georgia’s South Plant in Ochlocknee. 1984-86 Dick served as President of the Sorptive Minerals Institute (SMI), a not-for-profit, national trade association representing the producers and marketers of products made from absorbent clay minerals. MID 1980’S Favorite Products, Ltd., in Laval, Québec, Canada was acquired and sales were expanded throughout Canada. MID 1980’S Cat’s Pride Scented cat litter was introduced to the market. MID 1980’S Shipments to Europe continued; export sales expanded to new geographic locations including Japan, Malaysia and Australia. MID 1980’S 1 2 Previous Next Oil-Dri Transportation Company and the Oil-Dri Customer Service group were established 1982 1 2 Previous Next With Oil-Dri’s support, Verlyn “Swede” Roskam, another founding teammate, formed Educational Assistance, Ltd., which has since helped over 10,000 students achieve college educations. 1980 In order to receive bulk clay from the United States, Oil-Dri, S.A. built a plant on the Rhine River in Cologne, Germany. The plant repackaged the material as cat litter and floor absorbent. 1980 Milestone: Sales topped $33 million; earnings reached $1.2 million. 1980 Micro-granule products, Flo-Fre® Flowability Aid and Pel-Unite® Pellet Binder, were developed and introduced by the Agri-Tech division. 1981 Oil-Dri established a strategic alliance with The Clorox Company and jointly developed Fresh Step® coarse cat litter. 1970 1976 A new Agri-Tech division was established within the Company. 1979 Research & Development efforts moved from Chicago to newly purchased property in Prairie View, Illinois. Oil-Dri West was established as a division when the Company acquired a production plant and diatomaceous earth reserves in Christmas Valley, Oregon MID 1970’S 1 2 Previous Next Oil-Dri, S.A. was established in Coppet, Switzerland and production facilities were constructed in Wisbech, United Kingdom. Floor absorbents and cat litter were manufactured at these locations using a newly patented, synthetic technology and the company began exporting to Western Europe. 1974 Oil-Dri began paying cash dividends. 1972 The Company made its first cat litter sale to Walmart. 1971 With the aid of Edgar “Ned” Jannotta and the William Blair & Company, Oil-Dri made its initial public offering, releasing 120,000 shares of stock and raising $1.2 million to finance the building of its production plant in Ochlocknee, Georgia. 1970 Milestone: Sales reached $6.5 million; earnings were $526,000. 1970 Oil-Dri began its initial efforts researching additional product applications and also established its Consumer Products Group. 1960 1969 Milestone: Sales hit $5,000,000 1969 Ned Janotta, later chairman of William Blair, and Allan H. “Bud” Selig, later Commisioner of Major League Baseball, joined Oil-Dri’s Board of Directors. 1969 Oil-Dri expanded its cat litter and grease absorbent businesses to the European market. Oil-Dri Corporation of America was incorporated in Delaware as the successor to the Illinois corporation that was incorporated in 1946. 1965 1 2 Previous Next Agsorb® Carriers were introduced to the crop protection chemicals market to replace aerial crop dusting and thereby eliminate the drift of chemicals in agricultural applications. Additionally Dri-Nest was developed to absorb the wet droppings of nesting chickens. 1962 In conjunction with Purdue University’s Turf Grass Institute, TerraGreen® Soil Conditioner was developed for the building and maintenance of golf courses and other high value turf applications. Oil-Dri developed Kitty-Dri™ and Pet Purr™ branded cat litter. 1961 The brand Cat’s Pride® Cat Litter was introduced to the pet care market. 1962 Nick died from a heart attack at the age of 56. Dick began diversification and expanded the Company’s product offerings for a wide range of applications. EARLY 1960’S 1 2 Previous Next Oil-Dri began the vertical integration process and fully acquired the production plants and mineral reserves in Cairo, Georgia and Ripley, Mississippi. These businesses were merged with Oil-Dri Corporation of America. 1960 Dick took over operations and became President & CEO. 1950 1950 1 2 Previous Next In an effort to secure the Company’s supply of raw materials, Nick purchased a 22% stake of the Cairo Production Company located in Cairo, Georgia and 35% of Howell Southern Products in Ripley, Mississippi. 1950 Under the guidance of Al Swerdlik, one of the company’s founding teammates, Richard Jaffee began working part-time after school as Oil-Dri’s “office boy.” 1958 After finishing his military service, Dick Jaffee began his full-time career at Oil-Dri. 1959 Milestone: The Company had 15 teammates, sales averaged 20,000 tons a year and hit $1 million and the Company made a $6,000 profit. 1950 J. Kelly Dick (originally a pharmacist who saw potential in clay), started supplying Oil-Dri with clay produced in Paris, Tennessee; Cairo, Georgia and Ripley, Mississippi. 1940 1949 Nick Jaffee purchased the Jacksons’ portion of the business and became the sole owner of the Company. 1946 Oil-Dri incorporated in Illinois and became Oil-Dri Corporation of America. 1947 Oil-Dri sells its first bag of cat litter. 1943 Due to the product’s non-flammable attributes, Oil-Dri floor absorbent was tested and approved by the Underwriters Laboratories as a fire prevention product. 1946 The Company moved into a new 600-square-foot office at 520 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago. 1946 Milestone: Sales hit $500,000 1941 1 2 3 Previous Next With bags of clay in hand, Nick brought his two sons, Robert and Richard, to the Sears Roebuck garage on 79th and Stony Island in Chicago. He demonstrated how the clay could work as a floor absorbent in the grease pits—and ultimately made his first sale. 1941 Nick branded Roberts & Richards Corporation’s first floor absorbent “FLOOR-DRI” and began selling the product throughout Chicago. The Roberts & Richards office was on the corner of 22nd Street and Indiana Avenue, above a Walgreens drugstore. 1941 1 2 3 4 Previous Next Nick partnered with P.D. Jackson, owner of Motor Master Corporation, leveraging Jackson’s sales force to sell clay floor absorbents throughout the duration of the war. Oil-Dri was founded by Nick, P.D. Jackson and their two wives. The company exclusively sold mineral floor absorbents. The Floor-Dri product was renamed Oil-Dri. The iconic “Slipping Man” graphic was introduced. 1941 Oil-Dri began to market and advertise its product. “Uncle Elby” and his dog, “Napoleon” were introduced and through advertisements they became the face of the company. 1941 With the start of World War II, Nick realized auto parts would be scarce during wartime and began to research alternative products to sell. Nick identified the need for a nonflammable product to absorb oil from the floors of factories and garages that were doing war work. Through knowledge acquired at mining school, Nick thought Fuller’s Earth, a calcium-based clay, could be used in lieu of flammable sawdust because of the mineral’s highly absorbent properties. He placed a 10-ton order of Fuller’s Earth through Sinclair Refining and had it shipped to his home. 1930 1930’S 1 2 3 Previous Next Nick worked as a manufacturer’s agent in the auto parts industry. He then established the Roberts & Richards Corporation, named for his two sons, and focused on selling auto parts to mass merchandisers such as Sears, Roebuck & Company, Montgomery Ward and Walgreens. 1920 LATE 1920’S Nick moved to Chicago and held many jobs. He worked as a night shift mechanic in a garage, unloaded chickens in the South Water Market of Chicago’s Near West Side and later became an insurance salesman. 1923 1 2 3 Previous Next Nick was recruited out of high school to play basketball at the Wisconsin Mining School (which became University of Wisconsin-Platteville). He was later expelled for sleeping in chemistry class due to all-night performances with his Dixieland jazz band, Nick’s Imperial Orchestra. 1900 1906 Oil-Dri’s founder, Nick Jaffee, was born in Dubuque, Iowa. 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