MARTINSBURG – The opening ceremony for The Clorox Company’s Fresh Step Cat Litter plant took place on Friday, with the facility opening its doors to the community for the first time.
“We are certainly glad to have you here today and to be able to celebrate, on this beautiful morning, all of those who helped make possible the opening of our Martinsburg cat litter plant. It is a momentous celebration,” Jennifer Richter, vice president of manufacturing at The Clorox Company, said.
“We could not be prouder to be a part of the Berkeley County business community. This new plant behind me creates new jobs and economic impact for the region and for the great state of West Virginia. I fact, this project represents more than $190 million of economic impact to the local economy.”
She added that the new plant has brought over 100 new jobs, more than 80% of which are West Virginians hired at the Martinsburg plant.
The cat litter manufacturing plant in Martinsburg is located off of Tabler Station Road and will produce Clorox’s signature cat litter brands - Fresh Step and Scoop Away. The Martinsburg plant is the third Clorox manufacturing facility in West Virginia.
The celebration commemorated the beginning of operations at the plant, with a production start slated for early 2023.
Michael Holly, vice president of product supply services at The Clorox Company, spoke highly about Berkeley County and about the support from the community for the plant to come.
“We have a lot of cats and their owners that love our product, and we were at the point where we were outgrowing our operations,” Holly said. “We did look at a few locations before we arrived in Martinsburg, but when we got here, I remember a meeting that I had with Sandy Hamilton, who was the executive director of the Berkeley County Economic Development Authority at the time. It was a very interesting meeting. Sandy opened up the meeting by telling me she didn’t understand why we were looking anywhere else.”
He mentioned that the company is supporting many organizations in the area, including the Berkeley County Humane Society, the Unted Way of the Eastern Panhandle, the Martinsburg Rotary, the Martinsburg-Berkeley County Chamber of Commerce, the West Virginia Manufacturers Association. It is also partnering with Blue Ridge Community and Technical College and West Virginia University for workforce development.
“We pride ourselves in investing in the people and the communities that we operate in. We look forward to doing the same here in Martinsburg,” Holly said.
Additionally, Holly presented Peter Checkovich, president of Blue Ridge Community and Technical College, with a check of $10,000 from The Clorox Company.
“I know now, that while it took some time to get here, this is exactly the right place for us to be,” Holly said.
Berkeley County Councilmember Jim Whitacre was in attendance and spoke about the positive impact the opening of the facility will make locally.
Hamilton talked about how important it was for her to align the values of West Virginia with the values of the company that would come into the area.
“We can talk numbers, and I am not saying they are not important, but to me, it is more important that a company aligns with the values that our community and our state and our citizens have. That is what struck me that was so important about Clorox," Hamilton said.
Keith McIntosh, state projects coordinator, was in attendance for U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.
“In addition to providing many good paying jobs, the presence that Clorox brings is a fantastic addition to Berkeley County,” a letter from Manchin read.
U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., was in attendance and spoke as well.
“I often describe West Virginia as one big, small town. We know we have connections to one another, we care about one another, and obviously, Clorox is a company that cares about not just each other but the communities where they are,” Capito said.
Checkovich spoke about the partnership between the school and The Clorox Company.
“This is a wonderful example of when federal government, state government, local government, industry and higher education work together in the same direction — what we can do together,” Checkovich said.
Gov. Jim Justice was in attendance at the event and was pleased to be there.
“West Virginia is on the move,” Justice said. “It is just phenomenal what this means to us. It is a big, big day for West Virginia.”
Linda Rendle, chief executive officer for The Clorox Company, spoke to the audience in closing.
“We are really thrilled to be a part of this community and to continue to invest in this community as we move forward,” Rendle said.
At the event, there was an official ribbon cutting, breakfast reception courtesy of Blue Ridge Community and Technical College’s culinary program and tours of the new facility also took place.
The new location is at 1225 Corning Way in Martinsburg.