Procter and Gamble Ivorydale, Ohio

Ivorydale was once the most historically significant Procter and Gamble production site, as well as one of the largest, until its sale in 2003, to St. Bernard Soap (a unit of Ontario-based Trillium Health Care Products Inc). The factory complex, of 120 buildings on 243 acres, dates back to 1885, when P&G's operations expanded from the original, downtown location. Located about eight miles north of downtown Cincinnati, it got its name from Ivory soap, one of P&G's earliest and most successful products. A 43 acre food plant was built at Ivorydale, starting in 1911 for the production of Crisco Shortening. Other products once manufactured at the Ivorydale plants included Tide laundry soap, Crest toothpaste, and Olean. The headquarters for the company remains in downtown Cincinnati, and although P&G once had several technical centers and production plants around town, now there are but a handful left. P&G is one of the rare companies that can claim, accurately, to distribute its brands to nearly five billion people.