Item 1. BUSINESS
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Item 1. BUSINESS
OVERVIEW OF BUSINESS
We were founded in 1846 and incorporated in Delaware in 1925. We develop, manufacture and market a broad range of consumer household and personal care products and specialty products focused on animal and food production, chemicals and cleaners. Our consumer products marketing efforts are focused principally on our 14 “power brands.” These well-recognized brand names include ARM & HAMMER® baking soda, cat litter, laundry detergent, carpet deodorizer and other baking soda based products; TROJAN® condoms, lubricants and vibrators; OXICLEAN® stain removers, cleaning solutions, laundry detergents and bleach alternatives; SPINBRUSH® battery-operated toothbrushes; FIRST RESPONSE® home pregnancy and ovulation test kits; NAIR® depilatories; ORAJEL® oral analgesic; XTRA® laundry detergent; L’IL CRITTERS® and VITAFUSION® gummy dietary supplements for children and adults, respectively; BATISTE® dry shampoo; WATERPIK® water flossers and showerheads; ZICAM® cold shortening and relief products; THERABREATH® oral care products; and HERO® acne treatment products. We reevaluate the composition of our “power brands” from time to time, and in 2022 removed FINISHING TOUCH FLAWLESS® products from our list of power brands and added HERO® acne treatment products.
We sell our consumer products under a variety of brands through a broad distribution platform that includes supermarkets, mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs, drugstores, convenience stores, home stores, dollar and other discount stores, pet and other specialty stores and websites and other e-commerce channels, all of which sell our products to consumers. We sell our specialty products to industrial customers, livestock producers and through distributors.
Our Sustainability Strategy and Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Pillars
Sustainability is how we refer to our Environmental, Social & Governance (“ESG”) efforts as part of our overall success into delivering growth and profitability while making a meaningful and positive impact. We believe that sustainable operations are both financially and operationally beneficial to our business, and critical to the health of the communities in which we operate, while contributing to a better world. Each year we publish a Sustainability Report that discloses our business and corporate responsibility commitments and details our ESG performance metrics and targets and other components of our ESG efforts. Our 2021 Sustainability Report is available on our web site at https://churchdwight.com/pdf/Sustainability/2021-Sustainability-Report.pdf, and our 2022 Sustainability Report will be available in April 2023 (the “2022 Sustainability Report” and together with the 2021 Sustainability Report, the “Sustainability Reports”). References to our Sustainability Reports are for informational purposes only and neither the Sustainability Reports nor the other information on our website is incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Our global sustainability strategy is derived from our heritage and organizational values. The following six pillars are the core focus of our Environmental and Social efforts. Each is supported through our Governance practices which are intended to maintain a system of rules and practices that determine how we operate and align the interests of our stakeholders in support of ethical business practices and financial success.
Our Brands: Delight consumers with our brands and contribute towards a more sustainable world
Products: Provide safe and effective products for consumers and the environment
Packaging: Utilize consumer friendly and environmentally responsible packaging
Employees and Communities: Embrace the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”), good corporate citizenship and social responsibility within the communities we can impact
Environment: Minimize environmental impact of our global operations, with a focus on increased renewable energy usage, reduced water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and solid waste to landfills
Responsible Sourcing: Improve our suppliers’ environmental, labor, health & safety and ethical practices
Environmental. Our operations are subject to federal, state, local and foreign laws, rules and regulations relating to environmental concerns, including air emissions, wastewater discharges, solid and hazardous waste management activities, and the safety of our employees. We endeavor to take actions necessary to comply with such regulations. These steps include periodic environmental and health and safety audits of our facilities. The audits, conducted by independent firms with expertise in environmental, health and safety compliance, include site visits at each location, as well as a review of documentary information, to determine compliance with such federal, state, local and foreign laws, rules and regulations. However, our environmental priorities extend well beyond our compliance efforts, and include our focus on
providing safe and effective products for consumers and the environment, utilizing consumer friendly and environmentally responsible packaging, achieving greenhouse gas emission reductions, reducing water usage, recycling waste and solid waste and improving our suppliers’ environmental practices.
Social*.* Our Social focus areas include our goals of delighting consumers with our brands through our contributions towards a more sustainable world, improving our suppliers’ labor, health & safety and ethical practices, and supporting our employees to create a stronger, more resilient company while contributing to a better world. In their everyday work, employees embody our commitments to integrity, quality, and innovation, and in doing so, directly contribute to our long-standing character and reputation. Employee safety is a top priority. We develop and administer company-wide policies designed to ensure the safety of each team member and compliance with OSHA standards and, during the height of the pandemic, we implemented COVID-19 protocols across all locations to ensure both the safety of our employees and compliance with federal and local requirement and guidelines, and have continued these practices as the pandemic has moved into new stages where appropriate or required. We embrace the diversity of our employees and believe that a diverse workforce reflective of our consumer base fosters innovation and cultivates an environment filled with unique perspectives and strive to promote a culture and processes that support and enhance our ability to recruit, develop and retain diverse talent at every level. As part of our enhanced diversity and inclusion initiatives and our commitment to transparency and accountability, in 2022, we began publishing workplace demographics of our employees in our Sustainability Reports. We also encourage our employees to become involved in their communities through our Employee Giving Fund and The Church & Dwight Philanthropic Foundation (the “Foundation”) which is focused on helping to create DEI opportunities and advancing environmental preservation. The Foundation is administered by our employees. See pages 13-14 in this Item 1 of this Annual Report under “Employees and Human Capital” for a discussion of our human capital management.
Governance*.* Our governance focus includes the processes, rules, resources and systems in support of our operational, sustainability and ESG efforts, have been described in our 2022 Proxy Statement and will be described in our Proxy Statement for our upcoming Annual Meeting of Stockholders under the caption “Sustainability Strategy and ESG Pillars” and in our 2022 Sustainability Report. Our Corporate Issues Council (the “Council”), comprised of senior executives representing all of our key functional areas, guides the integration of sustainability with all parts of our business and drives continuous improvement in our sustainability approach and performance. The Council takes the lead in defining and implementing our sustainability strategies across the six sustainability and ESG pillars. Our Board of Directors, acting principally through its Governance, Nominating & Corporate Responsibility Committee, oversees our sustainability efforts, with that Committee and the Compensation & Human Capital and Audit Committees each focusing on specified areas of sustainability, including compliance and ethics, human capital and DEI. Our Independent Lead Director is responsible for ensuring that stockholder requests, recommendations and proposals are evaluated by the Governance, Nominating & Corporate Responsibility Committee, additional committees within the Board as appropriate, and then by the Board of Directors, if needed.
As described in our Sustainability Reports, our continued progress in key areas of ESG has earned recognition from various third parties.
We use the standards and guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative, Sustainability Accounting Standards Board industry specific standards and the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures to inform our sustainability and ESG disclosures included in this Annual Report, our Proxy Statement and our Sustainability Reports. The “materiality” thresholds in those standards and guidelines may differ from the concept of “materiality” for purposes of the federal securities laws and disclosures required by the Commission’s rules in this Annual Report. Moreover, the inclusion of sustainability and ESG disclosures in this Annual Report and in our other filings with the Commission does not necessarily imply that we consider them to be material for purposes of the federal securities laws or the Commission’s rules and regulations governing such disclosure.
FINANCIAL INFORMATION ABOUT SEGMENTS AND PRINCIPAL PRODUCTS
As discussed in more detail below, we operate in three principal segments: Consumer Domestic, Consumer International, and our Specialty Products Division (“SPD”). Refer to Note 17 to the consolidated financial statements included in this Annual Report and the discussion in “Item 7: Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” for information concerning the results of each of our segments.
All domestic brand “rankings” contained in this Annual Report are based on dollar share rankings from Information Resources, Inc. (“IRI”) Total US – Multi Outlet ("MULO") for the period ending December 25, 2022. Foreign brand “rankings” are derived from several sources.
Recent Acquisitions
On October 13, 2022, we acquired all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock of Hero Cosmetics, Inc. ("Hero"), the developer of the Hero® brand which includes the MIGHTY PATCH® acne treatment products (the “Hero Acquisition”). We paid $546.8 million, net of cash acquired, at closing, and deferred an additional cash payment of $8.0 million for five years to satisfy certain indemnification obligations, if necessary. We also issued $61.5 million of restricted stock which will be recognized as compensation expense as the restricted stock held for individuals who will continue to be employed by the Company vest. The vesting requirements are satisfied at various dates over a three-year period from the date of the acquisition. Hero’s annual net sales for the year ended December 31, 2022 were approximately
$179.0 million. The Hero Acquisition was financed with cash on hand and commercial paper borrowings and is managed in the Consumer Domestic segment.
Consumer Domestic
Our founders first marketed sodium bicarbonate, otherwise known as baking soda, in 1846 for use in home baking. Today, this product has a wide variety of uses in the home, including as a refrigerator and freezer deodorizer, scratch-free cleaner and deodorizer for kitchen surfaces and cooking appliances, bath additive, dentifrice, cat litter deodorizer and swimming pool pH stabilizer. We specialize in baking soda-based products, as well as other products which use the same raw materials or technology or which are sold in the same markets. Our Consumer Domestic segment includes each of our 14 power brands, as well as other well-known brands and household and personal care products. We divide the Consumer Domestic segment into household and personal care product groups.
Household Products
In 2022, household products constituted approximately 55% of our Consumer Domestic sales and approximately 42% of our consolidated net sales.
ARM & HAMMER Baking Soda remains the number one leading brand of baking soda in terms of consumer recognition of the brand name and reputation for quality and value. The cleaning and deodorizing properties of baking soda have led to the development of numerous baking soda-based household products. For example, we market ARM & HAMMER FRIDGE FRESH®, a refrigerator deodorizer equipped with a baking soda filter to help keep food tasting fresher, and ARM & HAMMER Carpet Deodorizer. Our other primary household products include laundry detergents marketed under the ARM & HAMMER, OXICLEAN and XTRA brands, fabric softener sheets marketed under the ARM & HAMMER brand, cat litter under our ARM & HAMMER brand, and household cleaning products under the CLEAN SHOWER®, SCRUB FREE®, ORANGE GLO®, OXICLEAN and KABOOM® brands. Our laundry detergents constitute our largest consumer business, measured by net sales.
Personal Care Products
In 2022, personal care products constituted approximately 45% of our Consumer Domestic sales and approximately 35% of our consolidated net sales.
Our personal care business was founded on the unique strengths of our ARM & HAMMER trademark and baking soda technology. We have expanded our personal care business through the acquisition of antiperspirants, oral care products, depilatories, reproductive health products, oral analgesics, nasal saline moisturizers, cold shortening and relief, acne treatment, and dietary supplements under a variety of other leading brand names.
ARM & HAMMER Baking Soda, when used as a dentifrice, helps whiten and polish teeth, removes plaque and leaves the mouth feeling fresh and clean. These properties led to the development of a complete line of sodium bicarbonate-based dentifrice products that are marketed and sold nationally primarily under the ARM & HAMMER® brand name. Our other personal care products include antiperspirants and deodorants under the ARRID® and ARM & HAMMER® brands, battery-operated toothbrushes under the SPINBRUSH® brand, condoms under the TROJAN® brand (the number one condom brand in the U.S.), water flossers and showerheads under the WATERPIK® brand (the number one water flosser and replacement showerhead brands in the U.S.), home pregnancy and ovulation test kits under the FIRST RESPONSE® brand (the number two selling brand in the U.S.), hair-removal products under the NAIR® brand (the number one depilatory in the U.S.), beauty devices under the FINISHING TOUCH FLAWLESS® brand (the number one women’s electric hair removal system in the U.S.), oral analgesics and oral care products under the ORAJEL® brand (the number one oral care pain relief in the U.S.), children’s gummy dietary supplements under the L’IL CRITTERS® brand (number two in the U.S.) and adult gummy dietary supplements under the VITAFUSION® brand (number one in the U.S.), ZICAM® brand (the number one cold shortening category in the U.S. ), a growing number of hair products under the BATISTE® (the number one dry shampoo in the U.S.), VIVISCAL® (the number one leading supplement for thinning hair in the U.S), XFUSION® and TOPPIK® hair fiber brands (the number one leading brand of hair fiber cosmetics for thinning hair in the U.S), THERABREATH® (the number two alcohol free mouthwash in the U.S.), nasal saline moisturizers and solutions under the SIMPLY SALINE® brand, and HERO® acne treatment products.
Consumer International
Our Consumer International segment markets a variety of personal care, household and over-the-counter products in international subsidiary markets, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Mexico and the United Kingdom. We also export to over 130 markets around the world, including China and Japan, through our global markets group (the “Global Markets Group” or “GMG”) using a broad network of third-party distributors.
Total Consumer International net sales represented approximately 17% of our consolidated net sales in 2022. Net sales of the subsidiary businesses originating in Europe, Canada, Australia and Mexico accounted for 35%, 26%, 8% and 7%, respectively, of our 2022 international
net sales in this segment. No other country in which we operate accounts for more than 20% of our total international net sales and no product line accounts for more than 20% of total international net sales.
Some of our U.S. power brands such as ARM & HAMMER, BATISTE, NAIR, OXICLEAN, TROJAN, L’IL CRITTERS, SPINBRUSH, WATERPIK, ANUSOL, and VITAFUSION are distributed in many of our international markets. In addition, we also export unique brands such as STERIMAR®, and FEMFRESH® out of the United Kingdom as well as our FINISHING TOUCH FLAWLESS brand, to many countries around the world.
We also market the CURASH® line of babycare products in Australia, and GRAVOL® anti-nauseant and RUB-A535 topical analgesic in Canada and other international markets. We also sell WATERPIK water flossers and showerheads in Australia, Canada, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Mexico and in other international markets.
Specialty Products Division
Our SPD segment focuses on sales to businesses and participates in three product areas: Animal and Food Production, Specialty Chemicals and Specialty Cleaners, and accounted for approximately 6% of our consolidated net sales in 2022.
Animal and Food Production Products
Since the ARM & HAMMER Animal and Food Production business began in 1972, with its launch of ARM & HAMMER baking soda as a feed additive to help dairy cows produce more milk, we have built a leading portfolio of nutritional supplements designed to help improve the health and productivity of dairy cows. Today our portfolio of dairy nutritional supplements includes brands such as MEGALAC® rumen bypass fat– a supplement made from natural oils – which enables cows to maintain energy levels during the period of high milk production, resulting in improved milk yields. In addition, we market a line of high-quality protein and amino acid products, including BIO-CHLOR® and FERMENTEN®, which are designed to help reduce health issues associated with calving, as well as provide needed protein to ensure proper growth and milk production.
Over the last six years, we have expanded our product offerings to include unique prebiotics and probiotics. CELMANAX® Refined Functional Carbohydrate is a yeast-based prebiotic that helps ensure a well-functioning gastrointestinal track in dairy cows, beef cattle, poultry and other livestock. On May 1, 2017, we acquired the Agro Biosciences, Inc. business and we now market the CERTILLUS® family of probiotics products in the poultry, dairy, beef and swine industries. On March 8, 2018, we acquired Passport Food Safety Solutions, Inc., which is focused on providing pre- and post-harvest food safety solutions for beef, poultry, and swine primarily for the application to carcasses to reduce food borne pathogens.
Specialty Chemicals
Our specialty chemicals business primarily encompasses the manufacture, marketing and sale of sodium bicarbonate in a range of grades and granulations for use in industrial markets. In industrial markets, sodium bicarbonate is used by other manufacturing companies as a leavening agent for commercial baked goods, as an antacid in pharmaceuticals, as a carbon dioxide release agent in fire extinguishers, as an alkaline agent in swimming pool chemicals, and as a buffer in kidney dialysis.
We and Occidental Chemical Corporation are equal partners in a joint venture, Armand Products Company, which manufactures and markets potassium carbonate and potassium bicarbonate for sale in domestic and international markets. The potassium-based products are used in a wide variety of applications, including agricultural products, specialty glass and ceramics, and potassium silicates. Armand also manufactures a potassium carbonate-based animal feed additive for sale by us in the dairy industry, described above under “Animal and Food Production Products.” Armand’s results are included in our Corporate segment.
Specialty Cleaners
We also provide a line of cleaning and deodorizing products for use in commercial and industrial applications such as office buildings, hotels, restaurants and other facilities.
We and Safety-Kleen Systems, Inc. (“Safety-Kleen”) are equal partners in a joint venture, ARMAKLEEN®, which has built a specialty cleaning products business based on our technology and Safety-Kleen’s sales and distribution organization. In North America, this joint venture distributes our proprietary product line of aqueous cleaners along with our ARMEX® blast media line, which is designed for the removal of a wide variety of surface coatings. These results are included in our Corporate segment.
COMPETITION
We compete in the household and personal care consumer product categories, which are highly innovative categories, characterized by a continuous flow of new products and line extensions, and require significant advertising and promotion. We compete in these categories primarily on the basis of product innovation and performance, brand recognition, price, value and other consumer benefits. Consumer products, particularly laundry and dietary supplements, are subject to significant price competition. As a result, we, from time to time, may need to reduce the prices for some of our products to respond to competitive and customer pressures and to maintain market share. Product introductions typically involve heavy marketing and trade spending in the year of launch, and we usually are not able to determine whether the new products and line extensions will be successful until a period of time has elapsed following the introduction of the new products or the extension of the product line.
Because of the competitive retail environment, we face pricing pressure from our retail customers and customers selling through other channels, particularly high-volume retail customers including, internet-based retailers, who have increasingly sought to obtain pricing concessions or better trade terms that could reduce our margins. Furthermore, if we are unable to maintain price or trade terms acceptable to our customers, they could increase product purchases from competitors and reduce purchases from us, which would harm our sales and profitability.
Our competitors in the Consumer Domestic and Consumer International segments include, among others, Procter & Gamble Company (“P&G”), The Clorox Company, Colgate-Palmolive Company, S.C. Johnson & Son, Inc., Nestle Purina PetCare Company and Nestle Health Science, Haleon plc, Henkel, Reckitt Benckiser Group plc, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer Inc., Bayer AG, Alere Inc., NBTY, Inc., Koninklijke Philips N.V., Unilever PLC, Sanofi and Pharmavite LLC. Many of these companies have greater financial resources than we do and have the capacity to outspend us in their attempts to gain market share. In addition, the growing number of sales channels and business models, such as niche brands, internet-only brands and retailer co-developed and owned brands, have increased competition in certain product categories, particularly within personal care, specialty hair care and dietary supplements, from less well capitalized competitors.
Competition within our animal and food production and our specialty chemicals product lines is intense. The specialty chemicals business operates in a competitive environment influenced by capacity utilization, customers’ leverage and the impact of raw material and energy costs. Product introductions typically involve introductory educational costs in the year of launch, and we usually are not able to determine whether new products and line extensions will be successful until a period of time has elapsed following the introduction of new products or the extension of the product lines. Our key competitors with respect to our SPD segment are Cargill Incorporated, Lallemand Inc., Solvay Chemicals, Inc., Genesis Alkali and Natural Soda, Inc. For additional discussion of the competitive environment in which we conduct our business, see Item 1A, "Risk Factors."
DISTRIBUTION OF OUR PRODUCTS
Our Consumer Domestic and Consumer International segments products are marketed primarily through a broad distribution platform that includes supermarkets, mass merchandisers, wholesale clubs, drugstores, convenience stores, home stores, dollar and other discount stores, pet and other specialty stores, and websites and other e-commerce channels, all of which sell our products to consumers. The Consumer Domestic Segment employs a sales force based regionally throughout the U.S. and utilizes the services of independent brokers, who represent our products in the food, mass, pet, dollar, club, and numerous other classes of trade. Our Consumer International segment conducts business through subsidiaries and global export markets. Our subsidiaries employ local sales and marketing teams that manage the retailer and trade relationships while export sales and marketing professionals also manage an extensive distributor network in our global export markets. Our products are stored in our plants and third-party owned warehouses and are either delivered by independent trucking companies or picked up by customers at our facilities.
SPD markets sodium bicarbonate and other chemicals to industrial and agricultural customers primarily throughout the U.S. and Canada. Distribution is accomplished through a dedicated sales force supplemented by manufacturers’ representatives and independent distributors. Our products in this segment are stored in our plants and public warehouses and are either delivered by independent trucking companies or picked up by customers at our facilities.
SEASONALITY
Our business is generally not seasonal, although the Consumer Domestic and Consumer International segments are affected by sales of SPINBRUSH battery-operated toothbrushes and WATERPIK water flossers (which typically are higher during the fall, in advance of the holiday season), sales of NAIR depilatories and waxes (which typically are higher in the spring and summer months), sales of VITAFUSION and L’IL CRITTERS dietary supplements and ZICAM cold shortening and relief products (which typically are slightly higher in the fourth quarter of each year, in advance of the cold and flu season and renewed commitments to health). In SPD, several of our Animal and Food Production products experience higher demand in warmer weather months creating higher seasonal demand in the second and third quarters of the year.
RAW MATERIALS AND SOURCES OF SUPPLY
We manufacture sodium bicarbonate for our consumer and specialty products businesses at our plants located at Green River, Wyoming and Old Fort, Ohio. The primary source of soda ash, a basic raw material used in the production of sodium bicarbonate, is the mineral trona, which is found in abundance in southwestern Wyoming near our Green River plant. We have adequate trona reserves under mineral leases to support our sodium bicarbonate requirements for the foreseeable future.
We are a party to a partnership agreement with Tata Chemicals (Soda Ash) Partners, which mines and processes trona reserves in Wyoming. We fulfill a substantial amount of our soda ash requirements through the partnership and related supply and services agreements, enabling us to achieve some of the economies of an integrated business capable of producing sodium bicarbonate and related products from the basic raw material. We also have an agreement for the supply of soda ash from another company. The partnership agreement and other supply agreements between the Tata Chemicals (Soda Ash) Partners and us are terminable upon two years notice by either of us. We believe that sufficient alternative sources of soda ash supply are available.
We believe that ample sources of raw materials are available for all our other major products. Detergent chemicals are used in a variety of our products and are available from a number of sources. Bottles, paper products and clay are available from multiple suppliers, although we choose to source most of these materials from single sources under long-term supply agreements in order to gain favorable economies of scale. We also use certifiable sustainable palm oil derivatives in a number of products, including primarily in our rumen bypass fats products. Alternative sources of supply are available in case of the disruption or termination of the supply agreements.
The cost of raw materials, including surfactants, diesel fuel and oil-based raw and packaging materials used primarily in our consumer businesses, were higher in 2022 relative to 2021, increasing our core commodity costs. Increases in the prices of certain raw materials could materially impact our costs and financial results if we are unable to pass such costs along in the form of price increases to our customers.
We utilize the services of third party contract manufacturers around the world for certain products.
PATENTS AND TRADEMARKS
Our trademarks appear in upper case letters throughout this Annual Report. The majority of our trademarks are registered with either the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office or with the trademark offices of many foreign countries. The ARM & HAMMER trademark has been used by us since 1867 and is a valuable asset and important to the successful operation of our business. Our products are sold under many other valuable trademarks held by us, including TROJAN, NAIR, ORAJEL, WATERPIK, FIRST RESPONSE, XTRA, OXICLEAN, SPINBRUSH, BATISTE, SIMPLY SALINE, L’IL CRITTERS, VITAFUSION, ZICAM, THERABREATH and HERO. Our portfolio of trademarks represents substantial value in the businesses using the trademarks.
U.S. patents are currently granted for a term of 20 years from the date the patent application is filed. Although we actively seek and maintain a number of patents, no single patent is considered significant to the business as a whole.
CUSTOMERS AND ORDER BACKLOG
In the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, net sales to our largest customer, Walmart Inc. and its affiliates (“Walmart”), were 24%, 24% and 23% respectively, of our consolidated net sales. No other customer accounted for 10% or more of our consolidated net sales in the three-year period. The time between receipt of orders and shipment is generally short, and as a result, backlog is not significant.
GOVERNMENT REGULATION
General
All of our products are subject to regulation by one or more U.S. agencies, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) as well as foreign agencies such as the European Commission, Health Canada, the Australia Therapeutic Goods Administration, the Mexico Federal Commission for Protection Against Health Risks (COFEPRIS) and others.
FDA regulations govern a variety of matters relating to our products, such as product development, manufacturing, premarket clearance or approval, labeling, distribution and post-market surveillance including complaint vigilance. The regulations adopted and standards imposed by the FDA and similar foreign agencies evolve over time and can require us to make changes in our manufacturing processes and quality systems to remain in compliance. These agencies periodically inspect manufacturing and other facilities. To maintain certification of our quality system and certain of the technical files of our products, we must monitor and adapt to changes to applicable standards. These changes may impose burdensome new requirements that require significant investment or rework. If we fail to comply with applicable
regulations and standards, we may be subject to sanctions, including fines and penalties, the recall of products and cessation of manufacturing and/or distribution.
In addition, we sell products that are subject to regulation under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act, both of which are administered by the EPA. Similar laws exist in other markets and may apply to our products.
We are also subject to regulation by the FTC and its counterparts in other jurisdictions in connection with the content and truthfulness of our labeling, advertising, promotion, trade practices and other matters. The FTC and foreign agencies have instituted numerous enforcement actions against companies for failure to adequately substantiate claims made in advertising or for the use of otherwise false or misleading advertising claims. These enforcement actions have resulted in consent decrees and the payment of civil penalties and/or restitution by the companies involved. Such actions can result in substantial financial penalties and significantly restrict the marketing of our products.
The CPSC and consumer protection agencies around the world have jurisdiction over consumer products, regulates their safety and has authority over recalls. The CPSC administers the Poison Prevention Packaging Act and has issued regulations requiring special child resistant packaging for certain products, including pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements, and dietary substances, containing certain ingredients (e.g., iron). The CPSC and similar foreign agencies also develop and enforce mandatory product safety standards to address trending safety concerns, such as the use of button cell batteries or the presence of toxic chemicals in consumer products.
Our relationship with certain union employees is regulated by various agencies of the countries, states, provinces and other localities in which we sell our products.
Medical Device Clearance and Approval
To be commercially distributed in the U.S., a medical device must, unless exempt, receive clearance or approval from the FDA pursuant to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (“FDCA”). For lower risk class II devices, we must generally submit a premarket notification requesting clearance for commercial distribution known as a “510(k)” clearance. Our condoms, lubricants, STERIMAR nasal congestion relief, home pregnancy test kits and WATERPIK professional dental products are regulated as class II devices. Some other low risk devices, including SPINBRUSH and other battery powered toothbrushes, oral care products including toothpastes, therapeutic massagers, nasal congestion relief and wound wash, wrist supports, WATERPIK water flossers and HERO acne treatment products are in class I or are unclassified and are generally exempted from the 510(k) requirements. To obtain 510(k) clearance, a device must be determined to be substantially equivalent in intended use and in safety and effectiveness to a benchmark device, or “predicate” that is already legally in commercial distribution. Any modification to a 510(k) cleared device that could significantly affect its safety or effectiveness, or that would constitute a change in its intended use, generally requires a new 510(k) clearance. We may determine that a new 510(k) clearance is not required, but if the FDA disagrees, it may retroactively require a 510(k) clearance and may require us to cease marketing or recall the modified device until 510(k) clearance is obtained.
In many countries outside the United States, to distribute a medical device lawfully, we must demonstrate conformity to local or regional standards for quality, safety and performance. For class II medical devices, we must obtain either government approval or certification from an accredited and approved Notified Body ("NB") that also performs periodic planned and surprise audits of our files and our quality system. These audits are shared in some cases, specifically among regulators in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Brazil, and Japan. Modification to a certified device generally requires government or NB review and approval prior to implementation of the change. Additionally, all safety incidents reported to a Health Authority must also be reported to the NB.
OTC Pharmaceutical
We market over-the-counter (“OTC”) pharmaceutical products, such as anti-acne cream, anticavity toothpaste, anticavity rinse, antiperspirant, hemorrhoid relief, skin protectant, antinauseant, oral analgesic and sunscreen drug products, that are subject to FDA and foreign regulation. Under the U.S. OTC monograph system, selected OTC pharmaceutical products are generally recognized as safe and effective and do not require the submission and approval of a new drug application. The FDA OTC monographs include well-known ingredients and specify requirements for permitted indications, required warnings and precautions, allowable combinations of ingredients and dosage levels. Pharmaceutical products marketed under the OTC monograph system must conform to specific quality, formula and labeling requirements. Following the passage of the CARES Act, FDA is updating and working to finalize current monographs, including those that affect our oral care products and HERO sunscreens. With these new regulations, OTC products will now need to be “state of the art” and will have significant focus on GMPs, especially manufacturing, final formulation testing, and safety incident reporting. Products not in the monograph system can be deemed to be unapproved new drugs and can be forced from the market. This is particularly the case for homeopathic drug products like certain ZICAM products. Both the FDA and the FTC have taken the position that homeopathic products are unapproved new drugs. Regulatory action against these products is deemed unlikely unless the products present an unreasonable safety risk. ZICAM homeopathic products are not currently perceived to pose any such risk.
All facilities where OTC pharmaceutical products are manufactured, tested, packaged, stored or distributed must comply with cGMP regulations and/or regulations promulgated by competent authorities in the countries where the facilities are located. All of our pharmaceutical products are manufactured, tested, packaged, stored and distributed according to cGMP regulations. The FDA performs
periodic audits to ensure that our facilities remain in compliance with all appropriate regulations. The failure of a facility to be in compliance may lead to a breach of representations made to customers or to regulatory action against us related to the products made in that facility, such as seizure, injunction or recall. Serious product quality concerns could also result in governmental actions against us that, among other things, could result in the suspension of production or distribution of our products, product seizures, loss of certain licenses or other governmental penalties, and could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or operating results. We are required to report serious adverse events associated with the use of our OTC pharmaceutical products marketed in the U.S.
We cannot predict whether new legislation regulating our activities will be enacted or what effect any legislation would have on our business.
Medical Device and OTC Pharmaceutical Postmarket Regulation
After a medical device and/or OTC pharmaceutical is commercialized, numerous regulatory requirements apply, including:
international quality system regulations, including those of the FDA and other regulatory authorities, impose current Good Manufacturing Practice (“cGMP”) requirements governing the methods used in, and the facilities and controls used for, the design, manufacture, packaging, servicing, labeling, storage, installation, and distribution of all finished medical devices and OTC pharmaceuticals intended for human use;
global standards and regulations affecting product design and development, including requirements to keep existing products current to the “state of the art,” and doing an ongoing assessment of the risk acceptability, adopting risk control measures where appropriate, and re-assessing the clinical benefit;
labeling regulations, including a prohibition on product promotion for unapproved or “off label” uses;
the medical device and drug reporting regulation requiring a manufacturer to report to the regulatory authorities if its drug or device may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury or malfunctioned in a way that would likely cause or contribute to a death or serious injury if it were to recur and ongoing post-market surveillance of the product and like-products to continuously evaluate the benefit/risk over the life of the product; and
regulations on corrections and removals which require a manufacturer to report recalls and field actions to the regulatory authorities if initiated to reduce a risk to health posed by the device or to remedy a violation of the applicable laws.
Food Products
We market baking soda and animal feed products, such as rumen fermentation enhancers and Dietary Cation-Anion Difference (“DCAD”) balancers that are also subject to FDA and foreign regulation. The Food Safety Modernization Act (“FSMA”) regulates food and animal feed products and mandates preventive controls, including hazard analysis, risk controls, supplier qualifications and controls and increased record keeping. FSMA grants the FDA the authority to require mandatory recalls for products under certain conditions. The FDA is currently in the process of establishing rules and guidance to implement the provisions of FSMA. The potential impact of these rules and applicable guidance will be determined as they are published, and compliance plans will be effected as necessary.
Dietary Supplements
The processing, formulation, safety, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, advertising, distribution, importing, selling, and storing our gummy vitamin dietary supplements are subject to regulation by one or more federal agencies, including the FDA, the FTC, the CPSC, the EPA, and by various agencies of the states and localities in which our products are sold. The FDCA governs the composition, safety, labeling, manufacturing and marketing of dietary supplements. Additionally, dietary supplements sold outside the U.S. may be regulated as drugs.
It is unlawful to market as a dietary supplement any article that is approved as a new drug or is authorized for investigation as a new drug for which substantial clinical investigations have been instituted and made public, unless that article was first marketed as a dietary supplement or food. The FDA has authority to effectively void that restriction through the issuance of a regulation finding the article lawful. The FDA has issued Warning Letters to companies selling supplements with unapproved new dietary ingredients, unsafe food additives, and/or drug claims.
Dietary ingredients that were not marketed in the U.S. before October 15, 1994 must be the subject of a new dietary ingredient notification submitted to the FDA at least 75 days before the initial marketing, unless the ingredient has been present in the food supply as an article used for food without being chemically altered. The notification must provide evidence of a history of use or other evidence establishing that use of the dietary ingredient is reasonably expected to be safe. The FDA may determine that notification does not provide an adequate basis to conclude that a new ingredient is reasonably expected to be safe, which could effectively prevent the marketing of the ingredient. In May 2022, the FDA issued draft guidance on enforcement policy with regard to premarket notification of new dietary ingredients. Although the draft guidance was issued for public comment and does not have the force of law, it is a strong indication of the FDA’s current thinking on
the FDA’s approach to enforcement. The FDA has signaled its intent to enforce the applicable statutes and regulations by requiring submission of a pre-market safety notification for “new” dietary ingredients.
A company that uses a statement of nutritional support in labeling must possess information substantiating that the statement is truthful and not misleading. If the FDA determines that a particular statement of nutritional support is an unacceptable drug claim or an unauthorized version of a health claim, or if the FDA determines that a particular claim is not adequately supported by existing scientific evidence or is otherwise false or misleading, the claim could not be used and any product bearing the claim could be subject to regulatory action.
The FDA’s cGMP regulations govern the manufacturing, packaging, labeling and holding operations of dietary supplement manufacturers. As with OTC products, the FDA performs periodic audits to ensure that our dietary supplement facilities remain in compliance with all appropriate regulations. The failure of a facility to be in compliance may lead to a breach of representation made to consumers or to regulatory action against us related to the products made in that facility, seizure, injunction or recall. There is considerable uncertainty with respect to the FDA’s interpretation and implementation of the cGMP regulations. The failure of a manufacturing facility to comply with the cGMP regulations may render products manufactured in that facility adulterated and subjects those products and the manufacturer to a variety of potential FDA enforcement actions. The manufacturer, packer, or distributor of a dietary supplement marketed in the U.S. whose name appears on the label of the supplement is required to report serious adverse events associated with the use of that supplement to the FDA.
Additional legislation may be introduced which, if passed, would impose substantial new regulatory requirements on dietary supplements. The effect of additional domestic or international governmental legislation, regulations, or administrative orders, if and when promulgated, cannot be determined. New legislation or regulations may require the reformulation of certain products to meet new standards and require the recall or discontinuance of certain products not capable of reformulation.
HUMAN CAPITAL
Overview
Much of our success comes from our culture. Our people share a collective energy and ambition towards making a difference supporting the greater good, by providing affordable, quality products for everyday life, as reflected in our ESG and sustainability commitments, and by giving back to their communities. Our culture generates a collective passion, strength and determination to make an outsized impact, every day.
Safety and Wellness
Employee safety remains our top priority. We develop and administer company-wide policies to ensure the safety of each team member and compliance with OSHA standards.
Our Employees
As of December 31, 2022, we had approximately 5,250 global employees, an increase of approximately 125 compared to December 31, 2021. Approximately 87% of our workforce is located in the Americas, 10% in Europe, Middle East, and Africa, and 3% in the Asia-Pacific region. About 49% of our employees are salaried and about 51% are paid hourly wages. During fiscal 2022, our overall turnover rate was approximately 21.5%. Our revenue per employee in fiscal 2022 was approximately $1.02 million.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
We embrace the diversity of our employees and, our DEI efforts aspire to help us achieve a more diverse workforce. We also strive to cultivate a culture and processes that support and enhance our ability to recruit, develop and retain diverse talent at every level.
As a company we remain committed to fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement, while at the same time striving to identify and eliminate barriers that have prevented the full participation of underrepresented groups.
In 2020, we established a Diversity & Inclusion Council that provides strategic direction, guidance and advocacy for our DEI initiatives which is led by our Chief Executive Officer and our Director, Diversity & Inclusion and includes diverse employees at every level from around the world. Our Board of Directors, acting principally through its Compensation & Human Capital Committee, oversees our DEI efforts.
We are committed to transparency and accountability that will drive continuous progress. As part of our enhanced diversity and inclusion initiatives and our commitment to transparency and accountability, in 2022 we began publishing workplace demographics of our employees in our Sustainability Reports.
Hiring, Development and Retention
Our talent strategy is focused on attracting the best talent and recognizing and rewarding performance, while continually developing, engaging and retaining our talented employees.
We invest resources in professional development and growth as a means of improving employee performance and improving retention. This includes our bi-annual “LEAP” (Leadership Empowerment Achievement Program), which is aimed at continuous learning, professional training and development opportunities, targeted leadership development courses for new and existing leaders of different levels of seniority, tuition reimbursement, and job specific programs for our employees.
Compensation and Benefits
Attracting and retaining talent is a priority at Church & Dwight. We offer competitive pay and a range of benefits that support the well-being of our increasingly diverse workforce. This includes offering competitive salaries and wages, as well as benefits such as health insurance, retirement and profit-sharing plans, and paid time off.
Employees are eligible for health insurance, prescription drug benefits, dental, vision, hospital indemnity, accident, critical illness, and disability insurance, life insurance, health savings accounts, flexible spending accounts, reproductive rights coverage, participation in savings plans, and identity theft insurance, in each case subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable plans and programs.
Communities
We encourage our employees to become involved in their communities, and in 2022, our Employee Giving Fund supported our communities by providing $1.3 million to 220 deserving community organizations through annual grants, disaster relief, and other monetary support. Employees purchased back-to-school supplies online to support disadvantaged youth, donated clothes and non-perishable items for clothing and food drives and provided supplies for a summer camp and holiday dinner for families in need. The Foundation was established in 2020 with the focus on helping to create equitable and inclusive opportunities and advancing environmental preservation. The Foundation is administered by our employees. In 2022, seven organizations were chosen and received grants in aggregate totaling $915,000. In the DEI space, the following organizations received grants: Junior Achievement, Bowie University and Virginia State University. In the Sustainability space, the following organizations received grants: The Recycling Partnership, the Ocean Conservancy, Northeast Wilderness Trust, and The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.
PUBLIC INFORMATION
We maintain a website at www.churchdwight.com and on the “Investors-Financial Information-SEC Filings” page of our website we make available free of charge our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, and our Current Reports on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file these materials with, or furnish them to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”). Also available on the “Investors-Corporate Governance” page on our website are our Corporate Governance Guidelines, charters for the Audit, Compensation, & Human Capital and Governance, Nominating & Corporate Responsibility Committees of our Board of Directors (the “Board”), our Code of Conduct and our Proxy Statement. We also publish a Sustainability Report that summarizes our business and corporate responsibility commitments and accomplishments including those related to our environmental, social, and governance performance. For more information regarding our sustainability strategy and ESG pillars please see the “Responsibility” page on our website and the discussion under the capital “Our Sustainability Strategy and Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) Pillars” included above. Each of the foregoing is also available in print free of charge and may be obtained upon written request to: Church & Dwight Co., Inc., 500 Charles Ewing Boulevard, Ewing, New Jersey 08628, attention: Secretary. The information presented on our website is not a part of this Annual Report and the reference to our website is intended to be an inactive textual reference only.
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