Church & Dwight Co., Inc., has announced that it intends to move forward with an expansion project at its facility in the village of Old Fort, Ohio, involving at least $50 million in new investment and the creation of 80 new jobs. This follows a fulfilled commitment in 2020 to invest $38 million and create 60 jobs. The Old Fort facility currently has 309 employees.
The project is being driven by growing demand for the facility’s cat litter manufacturing capacity. The expansion will include new manufacturing equipment, packaging machinery, and rail line improvements. The Old Fort location was in competition with other Church & Dwight facilities in Pennsylvania and California, in addition to other greenfield locations in the U.S.
“I’m so pleased that Church & Dwight has chosen our facility as the site of this major investment,” said David Johnston, plant manager at Church & Dwight. “It’s a testimony to our employees and the trust Church & Dwight has in our facility’s ability to produce great products consistently and efficiently.”
Church & Dwight, founded in 1846, is the leading U.S. producer of sodium bicarbonate, popularly known as baking soda. The company’s ARM & HAMMER brand is one of the nation’s most trusted trademarks for a broad range of consumer and specialty products. With headquarters in New Jersey, Church & Dwight has grown into a $4.6 billion company with more than 5,100 employees worldwide.
Johnston continued his recognition of the plant’s current employees, citing an ingrained work ethic and commitment to excellence. In addition, he complimented the regional transportation network. “Northwest Ohio is a great location from a distribution standpoint with major highways providing for the efficient movement of product,” he said.
Collaboration and strong support among the regional and statewide economic development groups, including the Tiffin-Seneca Economic Partnership, the Regional Growth Partnership, JobsOhio and the Ohio Rail Development Commission, were also critical to the project’s success.
“Church & Dwight’s continued expansion in Seneca County demonstrates the company’s confidence in Northwest Ohio’s manufacturing talent. This was a highly-competitive project that brings 80 new jobs to a facility that produces and distributes some of the country’s most recognizable brands.”
– J.P. Nauseef, JobsOhio president and CEO
The project is expected to be completed in 2024 and will make Church & Dwight one of the top 10 employers in Seneca County.
The Regional Growth Partnership is the lead economic development organization serving 17 counties in Northwest Ohio. As a private nonprofit development corporation, the RGP is dedicated to fostering regional, national and international business investment opportunities across the region. The RGP serves as Northwest Ohio’s network partner for JobsOhio. Visit www.rgp.org for more information.
JobsOhio is a private nonprofit economic development corporation designed to drive job creation and new capital investment in Ohio through business attraction, retention and expansion. The organization also works to seed talent production in its targeted industries and to attract talent to Ohio through Find Your Ohio. JobsOhio works with six regional partners across Ohio: Dayton Development Coalition, Ohio Southeast Economic Development, One Columbus, REDI Cincinnati, Regional Growth Partnership and Team NEO. Learn more at www.jobsohio.com. Follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.