50 Years of Innovation Timeline
First listed in 1964, in 2014 we celebrated 50 years as a Public Company and are the only chemical company remaining on the UK stock market from the 32 listed in 1964.
Smart Science to Improve Lives™
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1964
Croda becomes a public company.
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1965
Croda Inc purchases a site at Mill Hall, Pennsylvania, to expand manufacturing facilities in North America.
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1966
United Premier Oil & Cake Company is acquired, this included Universal Oil Company, a manufacturer of fatty acids, the basic material of the oleochemical industries.
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1968
Croda acquires British Glues and Chemicals, one of the UK's two major producers of gelatin.
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1968
Croda launches its world leading Crodamide™ range of fatty acid amides, a key element of polymer processing.
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1970
Expansion continues into Japan, Canada, Australia, South Africa, France and Brazil. Croda becomes truly international.
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1976
Croda launches Crotein™ Q, the first quaternised protein, a revolution in hair conditioning.
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1977
Super Refining™ process is developed at Croda Japan, attaining highest levels of purity and quality, Snow White Lanolin™ is developed.
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1982
Croda successfully fights a takeover bid by Burmah Oil. This brings a change in strategy, focusing on the businesses it knows best; naturally derived speciality chemicals.
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1985
Croda is the first company to develop a wheat based protein ingredient.
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1988
£15 million redevelopment and expansion of the Rawcliffe Bridge factory. This enables greater responsiveness to market needs and initiates further sales growth.
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1991
Croda bought Novarom (renamed Crodarom in 1998), a German company specialising in plant extracts. Botanical and plant extracts can now be manufactured using ‘greener’ extraction techniques through patented ‘microwave’ technology.
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1991
Crodasone™ W is launched; this is the first silicone co-polymer, offering proven protection against hair cuticle damage caused by blow drying.
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1994
Hydrotriticum™ PVP is launched: the first PVP co-polymer that delivers conditioning properties for hair.
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1997
Acquisition of Sederma, a world leader in active ingredients for skin care.
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1998
Westbrook Lanolin is acquired, reinforcing Croda’s position as the world’s leading lanolin producer.
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2000
Croda celebrates its 75th anniversary. A new $50 million speciality chemicals complex is opened in Singapore, one of the worlds most advanced chemical manufacturing sites.
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2002
Crodamazon™ range of natural oils is launched. Based on the ‘Fruits of the Rainforest’ and working in partnership with communities living on the banks of the Amazon.
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2003
Matrixyl™ and Dermaxyl™ are launched by Sederma, heralding a breakthrough in anti-wrinkle treatment.
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2004
New North American head office and Innovation Centre open in Edison, New Jersey.
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2005
The Enterprise Technologies division is formed to identify and commercialise new technologies. (Re-named Technology Investment Group, TIG, in 2013).
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2006
Croda acquires Uniqema from ICI, creating a chemical company with sales of nearly £1 billion. The Uniqema acquisition brought many new products such as the industry leading Span™ and Tween™ surfactants and the Solaveil™ brand of sun care actives.
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2006
Optisol™ range of UV absorbers are launched, delivering broad spectrum sun protection against both UVA and UVB rays, reinforcing the respected Solaveil™ and SpeXtra™ ranges added by Uniqema. Croda Health Care launches PureMax™, the process technology at the heart of Omega-3 fish oil production.
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2007
Croda Lubricants launch Perfad™ 3950, a lubricity/emulsifier package with unique low foaming properties
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2008
A wind turbine is installed at Croda in Hull, displacing 40% of the site’s imported electricity and building on Croda’s already strong sustainability credentials.
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2009
Croda Home Care launches Cirrasol™ ST, a new softening additive for 2-in-1 liquid laundry detergents.
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2010
The award winning 1% Club is rolled-out globally, enabling employees to donate 1% of their working time to get involved with community projects. Turnover reaches £1 billion for the first time as Croda continues an unbroken run of sales and profit growth over the previous ten years. New offices and laboratories are completed at Cowick Hall, global headquarters.
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2011
NatraGem™ range of high purity emulsifiers and stabilisers are launched for the Personal Care market. Coatings & Polymers launch Priamine™ and B-tough™, an epoxy toughening additive for marine and protective coatings.
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2011
The acquisition of Innovachem added Panthequat™ conditioner and the Liquiwax™ range of cosmetic esters to the Personal Care portfolio. Croda Health Care launches IRB products GPI Choline™ PE and GPI Lysine™ PE, these use innovative mechanisms to give fast relief from inflammation and itching.
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2012
$6 million landfill-gas-to-energy project is undertaken at the Atlas Point plant in New Castle, Delaware. The acquisition of IRB (Istituto di Ricerche Biotecnologiche) leads Croda into plant cell culture biotechnology. Croda joins the global MSCI stock index; this increases overseas share ownership and thus diversity of the investor base. First Croda sites receive certification from the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). Croda Polymer Additives launch Atmer™ 7373: a new anti-fog additive for polypropylene.
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2013
Volarest™ FL is launched, the first product from Acrylic Polymers, which offers unique textural properties and exciting formats to the consumer. The Specialty Products business of Arizona Chemical of Jacksonville, Florida is acquired, adding a class leading range of oil gelling polymers to the portfolio.
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2013
Croda acquires a 65% equity interest in Sichuan Sipo Chemical Co Ltd (SIPO), a natural speciality chemicals manufacturer based in Sichuan Province, China. A new solar installation project at the Atlas Point manufacturing site is commissioned, which will generate 5% of site’s electricity. The new Acrylic Polymers plant is officially opened at Rawcliffe Bridge.
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2014
Croda is ranked 28th in the Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations in the World. Croda celebrates 50 years as a public company.