Ralston Purina facts for kids
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| Industry | Food, pet food, animal feeds |
|---|---|
| Fate | Acquired by Nestlé; merged into Nestlé's pet food business |
| Successor | Nestlé Purina PetCare |
| Founded | January 8, 1894 (as Purina Mills) |
| Founder | William H. Danforth |
| Defunct | December 12, 2001 |
| Headquarters | , |
| Products | Dog food, cat food, animal health products, breakfast cereal, crisp bread |
The Ralston Purina Company was a large American business. It was based in St. Louis, Missouri. This company made many different products. These included animal feed, human food, and pet food. They also had other consumer products and even entertainment businesses.
On December 12, 2001, Ralston Purina joined with Nestlé. Nestlé is a huge food company from Switzerland. Ralston Purina's pet food business became part of Nestlé's pet food division. This new company is now called Nestlé Purina PetCare Company.
Contents
The Story of Ralston Purina
The Ralston Purina story began in 1894. A man named William H. Danforth started an animal feed company. It was first called Purina Mills. Danforth worked with George Robinson and William Andrews. They focused on making food for farm animals.
Their main brand for each animal was called "Chow." So, you would find "Purina Horse Chow" or "Purina Dog Chow." There was also "Purina Cat Chow" and "Purina Pig Chow."
Later, the company started making breakfast cereals. A person named Webster Edgerly helped promote these cereals. He was the founder of a movement called Ralstonism. Edgerly believed in eating whole-grain cereals. These cereals became very popular. Because of this success, the company changed its name in 1902. It became the Ralston-Purina Company.
Over the years, Ralston Purina sold off some of its businesses. In 1986, they sold their US animal feed business. This part is now owned by Land O'Lakes. In 1994, the human food part of Ralston Purina became a new company. It was called Ralcorp Holdings. In 1998, they sold their international animal feed business. This business is now owned by Cargill. These animal feed companies still use the Purina and Chow names.
Joining with Nestlé
Ralston Purina was bought by Nestlé, a company from Switzerland. Nestlé already owned the Friskies pet food brand. Friskies was another top pet food brand in the US. In January 2001, Nestlé and Ralston Purina announced they would join together. Nestlé bought all of Ralston Purina's shares. This deal was worth about $10.3 billion.
To make sure there was fair competition, some pet food brands had to be sold. For example, "Meow Mix" was sold to another company. Today, Purina brands are made by Nestlé Purina PetCare. This division is still based in St. Louis.
Ralston Purina also made other pet products. These included Tidy Cats and Yesterday's News cat litter. Yesterday's News cat litter is made from recycled newspaper. Since 1968, Purina has honored Canadian animals. They have an Animal Hall of Fame. Recent honorees include police dogs that helped catch criminals.
Other Businesses Ralston Purina Owned
Ralston Purina owned many different types of businesses over the years.
In 1974, Ralston Purina bought and improved the Keystone Resort in Colorado. "Checkerboard Flats" is a ski area for kids there. It still has the Ralston Purina logo. In 1993, they also bought the Breckenridge ski area. However, both ski resorts were sold in 1997. They were sold to Vail Resorts for $331 million.
In 1977, Ralston Purina bought the St. Louis Blues hockey team. This team plays in the National Hockey League. When they owned the team, they changed the name of the St. Louis Arena. It became the Checkerdome. This name showed off the Ralston Purina logo. The team was sold in 1983.
Ralston Purina also bought the Eveready Battery Company in 1986. This company makes Eveready and Energizer batteries. The battery company became its own separate company in 2000.
In 1984, Ralston Purina bought the Continental Baking Company. This company made popular items like Wonder bread and Hostess cakes. Ralston later sold off Continental Baking Company.
In 1986, Ralston Purina tried opening pizza stores. They called them Checkerboard Pizza. These stores were similar to Domino's. They tested them in places like Moorhead, Minnesota. The stores did well, but Ralston Purina decided not to stay in the pizza business. All the test stores closed by late 1987.
From 1968 to 1985, Ralston Purina owned Jack in the Box fast food restaurants. They also owned some fancy restaurants.
From 1963 to 1988, Ralston Purina owned the Van Camp Sea Food Company. This company was a tuna cannery. Its main product was Chicken of the Sea tuna.
In the 1970s and 1980s, Ralston Purina also owned a company that made medicines for animals.
The Famous Checkerboard Logo
Ralston Purina's well-known "checkerboard" logo started in 1902. The founder, William H. Danforth, got the idea from his childhood. He remembered a family wearing clothes made from the same checkerboard fabric. The company's main office was even called Checkerboard Square.
Danforth used this design to show an idea from his book, I Dare You. In his book, he said that four important parts of life need to be balanced. These parts are "Physical," "Mental," "Social," and "Religious." He believed that one area should not grow too much at the cost of the others. In 1921, this checkerboard design also inspired the shape of their animal feed. The feed was pressed into square cubes, which they called "checkers."
