Mead Johnson
Encyclopedia
Mead Johnson & Company is a company which was majority owned by Bristol-Myers Squibb
after an acquisition in 1967, but was spun off in 2009 as an independent firm. Mead Johnson is a major manufacturer of infant formula
both domestically and globally with its flagship product Enfamil
. The company dates back to a firm created by Edward Mead Johnson
, one of the co-founders of Johnson & Johnson
, who created his own business in 1895, which was renamed Mead Johnson & Company in 1905.
The company had global sales of $2.83 billion in 2009, with two-thirds of its revenue coming from outside the United States, where declining birth rates have led to a reduced market share. The company is gaining a presence in such emerging markets as the People's Republic of China
, Thailand
, Malaysia, Indonesia
, and Vietnam
and is also starting to develop a presence in India
. Enfamil, the company's flagship brand, commanded 11.7% of the $22.3 billion market for infant formula worldwide in 2008.
had founded Johnson & Johnson
in 1886 together with his brothers. In 1895, Johnson developed a side business called The American Ferment Company to create a digestive aid. In 1897, E. Mead Johnson left the family business to go out into business on his own in Jersey City, New Jersey
, and in 1905, the company was re-established as Mead Johnson & Company. The firm's first major infant formula
was developed in 1910, and Dextri-Maltose, a carbohydrate-based milk modifier was introduced in 1911, making it the first American product for infants to be clinically approved and recommended by doctors. The firm moved to Evansville, Indiana
, in 1915, in the wake of World War I
, as part of an effort to have easier access to the raw agricultural ingredients that were needed for its products, which required Johnson to build a series of new plants and factories to replace the ones he had left behind in New Jersey.
C. Joseph Genster
was the group director for nutritional specialties, which launched the Metrecal
protein
-based liquid diet product for adults in September 1959. Originally the product came as a powder which was mixed with water and contained powdered skim milk, soybean flour and corn oil and was fortified with vitamins and minerals, a formula that included more protein than other diet products. The Metrecal diet plan had people consume four self-prepared shakes (or portion-controlled cans) of Metrecal a day, with each can providing 225 calories. The 900-calorie-a-day diet helped many lose weight and the product became a diet craze in the early 1960s in the U.S. By the mid-1970s the Metrecal fad had faded and a Food and Drug Administration
call to remove liquid protein-based products from store shelves put an end to the phenomenon.
Lambert Mead succeeded his father as president following his death and served in the position until 1955, making him the longest-serving president in company history. D. Mead Johnson was the third generation of the family to serve as chief executive of the firm. During his tenure, which lasted from 1955 until the firm's takover by Bristol-Myers in 1968, the firm's annual sales tripled to $131 million and grew to nearly 4,400 employees.
Bristol-Myers announced in February 2009 that it was going to spin off Mead Johnson to focus on its primary pharamaceutial business, with an initial public offering
estimated to bring in $562.5 million and would leave Bristol-Myers with 90% ownership of the firm. A plan offered in November 2009 would allow shareholders of Bristol-Myers to exchange to exchange one dollar of stock in that company for $1.11 worth of shares in Mead Johnson for the 133.5 million shares in the firm, which would value the company at $7.7 billion based on the stock's then current closing price. The stock swap was intended to provide a tax-free exchange. CEO James M. Cornelius of Bristol-Myers said that "With a successful execution of this split-off, we fully consider ourselves a BioPharma company".
Bristol-Myers Squibb
Bristol-Myers Squibb , often referred to as BMS, is a pharmaceutical company, headquartered in New York City. The company was formed in 1989, following the merger of its predecessors Bristol-Myers and the Squibb Corporation...
after an acquisition in 1967, but was spun off in 2009 as an independent firm. Mead Johnson is a major manufacturer of infant formula
Infant formula
Infant formula is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, usually prepared for bottle-feeding or cup-feeding from powder or liquid . The U.S...
both domestically and globally with its flagship product Enfamil
Enfamil
Enfamil is a brand of infant formula made by Mead Johnson. Since 1972, the rabbit character appearing on the packaging is Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit.Enfamil is a product name associated with formulas for babies.-History:...
. The company dates back to a firm created by Edward Mead Johnson
Edward Mead Johnson
Edward Mead Johnson was an American businessman and one of the co-founders of Johnson & Johnson. In 1886, Edward Mead Johnson abandoned a career in law and joined his two brothers Robert Wood Johnson I, and James Wood Johnson to found Johnson & Johnson in New Brunswick, New Jersey...
, one of the co-founders of Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson is an American multinational pharmaceutical, medical devices and consumer packaged goods manufacturer founded in 1886. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company is listed among the Fortune 500....
, who created his own business in 1895, which was renamed Mead Johnson & Company in 1905.
The company had global sales of $2.83 billion in 2009, with two-thirds of its revenue coming from outside the United States, where declining birth rates have led to a reduced market share. The company is gaining a presence in such emerging markets as the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Malaysia, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and is also starting to develop a presence in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Enfamil, the company's flagship brand, commanded 11.7% of the $22.3 billion market for infant formula worldwide in 2008.
History and products
Edward Mead JohnsonEdward Mead Johnson
Edward Mead Johnson was an American businessman and one of the co-founders of Johnson & Johnson. In 1886, Edward Mead Johnson abandoned a career in law and joined his two brothers Robert Wood Johnson I, and James Wood Johnson to found Johnson & Johnson in New Brunswick, New Jersey...
had founded Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson is an American multinational pharmaceutical, medical devices and consumer packaged goods manufacturer founded in 1886. Its common stock is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the company is listed among the Fortune 500....
in 1886 together with his brothers. In 1895, Johnson developed a side business called The American Ferment Company to create a digestive aid. In 1897, E. Mead Johnson left the family business to go out into business on his own in Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City, New Jersey
Jersey City is the seat of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States.Part of the New York metropolitan area, Jersey City lies between the Hudson River and Upper New York Bay across from Lower Manhattan and the Hackensack River and Newark Bay...
, and in 1905, the company was re-established as Mead Johnson & Company. The firm's first major infant formula
Infant formula
Infant formula is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, usually prepared for bottle-feeding or cup-feeding from powder or liquid . The U.S...
was developed in 1910, and Dextri-Maltose, a carbohydrate-based milk modifier was introduced in 1911, making it the first American product for infants to be clinically approved and recommended by doctors. The firm moved to Evansville, Indiana
Evansville, Indiana
Evansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...
, in 1915, in the wake of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, as part of an effort to have easier access to the raw agricultural ingredients that were needed for its products, which required Johnson to build a series of new plants and factories to replace the ones he had left behind in New Jersey.
C. Joseph Genster
C. Joseph Genster
Charles Joseph Genster was an American business executive at the nutrition company Mead Johnson who oversaw the development and marketing of Metrecal, a liquid diet drink that became a weight loss craze in the early 1960s.Genster was born September 5, 1917, in Sheffield, Illinois, where he...
was the group director for nutritional specialties, which launched the Metrecal
Metrecal
Metrecal was a brand of diet foods introduced in the early 1960s. Though its products were criticized for their taste, which newer varieties of flavor tried to improve upon later, it attained a niche in the popular culture of the time. Created and marketed initially by C...
protein
Protein
Proteins are biochemical compounds consisting of one or more polypeptides typically folded into a globular or fibrous form, facilitating a biological function. A polypeptide is a single linear polymer chain of amino acids bonded together by peptide bonds between the carboxyl and amino groups of...
-based liquid diet product for adults in September 1959. Originally the product came as a powder which was mixed with water and contained powdered skim milk, soybean flour and corn oil and was fortified with vitamins and minerals, a formula that included more protein than other diet products. The Metrecal diet plan had people consume four self-prepared shakes (or portion-controlled cans) of Metrecal a day, with each can providing 225 calories. The 900-calorie-a-day diet helped many lose weight and the product became a diet craze in the early 1960s in the U.S. By the mid-1970s the Metrecal fad had faded and a Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
call to remove liquid protein-based products from store shelves put an end to the phenomenon.
Lambert Mead succeeded his father as president following his death and served in the position until 1955, making him the longest-serving president in company history. D. Mead Johnson was the third generation of the family to serve as chief executive of the firm. During his tenure, which lasted from 1955 until the firm's takover by Bristol-Myers in 1968, the firm's annual sales tripled to $131 million and grew to nearly 4,400 employees.
Acquisition and spin-off from Bristol-Myers
Bristol-Myers reached agreement in August 1967 for a deal under which Mead Johnson would be acquired, with shareholders receiving a mix of common and preferred stock in a deal valued at $240 million. Mead Johnson's net sales in 1966 were $131 million with earnings of $7.3 million.Bristol-Myers announced in February 2009 that it was going to spin off Mead Johnson to focus on its primary pharamaceutial business, with an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
estimated to bring in $562.5 million and would leave Bristol-Myers with 90% ownership of the firm. A plan offered in November 2009 would allow shareholders of Bristol-Myers to exchange to exchange one dollar of stock in that company for $1.11 worth of shares in Mead Johnson for the 133.5 million shares in the firm, which would value the company at $7.7 billion based on the stock's then current closing price. The stock swap was intended to provide a tax-free exchange. CEO James M. Cornelius of Bristol-Myers said that "With a successful execution of this split-off, we fully consider ourselves a BioPharma company".