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News Release
RELEASE:Immediate CONTACT:Ronda J Williams
312-706-3232
OIL-DRI COMPLETES ACQUISITION
STRENGTHENING ITS POSITION AS THE WORLD'S LARGEST CAT
LITTER PRODUCER AND
EXPANDING ITS ABILITY TO SERVICE CUSTOMERS WORLDWIDE
CHICAGO - December 13, 2002 - Oil-Dri Corporation of America (NYSE:
ODC) announced today that it has completed the acquisition of
certain assets related to the Jonny Cat(R) brand of cat litter from
A&M Products, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Clorox Company
(NYSE: CLX). Included in the purchase are trademarks, inventories,
extensive mineral reserves and a manufacturing plant in Taft,
Calif., located near Bakersfield.
The acquired assets, which generate revenues of approximately
$18,000,000, include Jonny Cat litter, Jonny Cat liners, industrial
absorbents and agricultural carriers. The acquisition was
structured as an asset purchase. It was made with internally
generated cash and no additional financing will be required.
Daniel S. Jaffee, President and Chief Executive Officer commented,
"This acquisition is part of our strategic plan to expand
distribution nationwide. Acquiring the Taft manufacturing facility
ensures customers of quality service coast to coast. We see many
opportunities to grow Jonny Cat while furthering distribution of
our Cats Pride(R) brand and private label cat litter to markets
where they are not currently represented. This facility will impact
our distribution for agricultural and industrial products as well.
"We believe there are at least 20 years of proven mineral reserves
at the Taft location. As evidenced by the strong market share of
Jonny Cat, these minerals are of the highest quality on the West
Coast for cat litter, industrial and agricultural businesses."
Jonny Cat is the most popular brand in several large metropolitan
areas (including Los Angeles and San Francisco) in the Western and
Eastern United States and Western Canada. With 75% of the business
on the West Coast, this brand has years of proven stability and is
considered a mainstay in the cat litter category.
The top selling regional coarse cat litter, Jonny Cat is sold in
several mass merchandiser and club stores including Costco, Pet
Specialty, Petsmart, and Petco. Its primary distribution, however,
is in the grocery market where 65% of the product is sold. The top
grocery accounts include Safeway, Albertsons and Ralphs.
"We are excited about being able to employ the staff at Taft, many
of whom have 15 years or more of service at the plant," added
Jaffee. "We are pleased with the seasoned workforce and the well
maintained facility which should not require substantial capital
investment to meet increased volume."
Oil-Dri now operates 12 U.S. and international manufacturing
facilities, eight of which are supported by mining operations. In
business for over 60 years, the company serves diverse sorbent
markets including pet products, industrial and automotive, fluids
purification, animal health and nutrition, agricultural carriers
and sports turf products. The wealth of Oil-Dri's experience in the
mining and manufacturing sector will help make this transition
smooth and seamless.
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"By utilizing our direct-to-customer delivery model and by
introducing profitable line extensions we expect the acquired
assets to materially enhance our cash return relative to our
investments," continued Jaffee. "Once we have successfully
integrated this facility into our manufacturing system, I am
confident that it will deliver synergies that will make Oil-Dri
stronger and more competitive in our markets and help us deliver
value to our customers and our shareholders."
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THE COMPANY WILL CONDUCT A LIVE WEB CAST OF THE JONNY CAT
ACQUISITION ANNOUNCEMENT AND FIRST QUARTER EARNINGS ON DECEMBER 19,
2002 AT 10:00 A.M. CST. TO LISTEN TO THE CALL VIA THE WEB, PLEASE
VISIT WWW.STREETEVENTS.COM OR WWW.OILDRI.COM. AN ARCHIVED RECORDING
OF THE CALL WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR APPROXIMATELY 30 DAYS AFTER THE
TELECONFERENCE, AND WRITTEN TRANSCRIPTS WILL BE POSTED ON THE
OIL-DRI WEB SITE.
OIL-DRI CORPORATION OF AMERICA IS THE WORLD'S LARGEST MANUFACTURER
OF CAT LITTER AND A LEADING SUPPLIER OF SPECIALTY SORBENT PRODUCTS
FOR INDUSTRIAL, AUTOMOTIVE, AGRICULTURAL, HORTICULTURAL AND
SPECIALTY MARKETS.
THIS RELEASE CONTAINS CERTAIN FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS REGARDING
THE COMPANY'S EXPECTED PERFORMANCE FOR FUTURE PERIODS, AND ACTUAL
RESULTS FOR SUCH PERIODS MIGHT MATERIALLY DIFFER. SUCH
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS ARE SUBJECT TO UNCERTAINTIES WHICH
INCLUDE, BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO, COMPETITIVE FACTORS IN THE
CONSUMER MARKET; THE LEVEL OF SUCCESS IN IMPLEMENTATION OF PRICE
INCREASES AND SURCHARGES; CHANGES IN OVERALL AGRICULTURAL DEMAND;
CHANGES IN THE MARKET CONDITIONS, THE OVERALL ECONOMY, ENERGY
PRICES, AND OTHER FACTORS DETAILED FROM TIME TO TIME IN THE
COMPANY'S ANNUAL REPORT AND OTHER REPORTS FILED WITH THE SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.