These adjectives certainly described Jay Patrick, who founded Alacer
Corp. in 1972 at the age of 60. Patrick built the company into a
leading producer of vitamin C products over the next three decades
until his passing in 2003. Today, Alacer produces and sells more than
400 million packets of Emergen-C® brand dietary supplements annually.
During
his leadership of Alacer, Mr. Patrick drew on his varied background as
a writer, chemist, engineer, businessman and even a performer. He built
a close relationship with Dr. Linus Pauling, who won a Nobel Prize for
his research into the benefits of vitamin C. Patrick appeared alongside
Pauling on radio and television programs to discuss the benefits of
vitamin C. His passion and dedication for vitamin C continues to
benefit people worldwide.
In 1978
Emergen-C effervescent powdered drink mix was introduced as “the
champagne of nutritional drinks” and featured the 1,000 mg of vitamin C
as mineral ascorbates that came to be Alacer’s signature formulation.
It was a novel delivery system for vitamins and minerals, providing
consumers with a fast, fun way to boost their health and energy. Across
the 30-year history of Emergen-C, consumer awareness of the brand has
grown through word-of-mouth, peer-to-peer sampling and the passionate
support of health and natural retailers. Over the past few years,
Alacer has initiated national radio and television advertising to
accelerate consumer trial of Emergen-C. In the past 12 months over 5
million new consumers have tried the Emergen-C brand for the first time.
Based
in Foothill Ranch, Calif., Alacer’s mission is to build on its legacy
of innovation by providing the world with nutritionally enhanced
products that support an energetic, healthy lifestyle. The company is a
leader in the vitamin C industry with expanded product lines, new
distribution channels and state-of-the-art production facilities in
Foothill Ranch and Chicago. Under the direction of President and CEO
Ron Fugate, sales of its Emergen-C fruity, fizzing drink mix brand have
increased 33 percent from May 2007 through April 2008 and are
responsible for all the growth in the U.S. vitamin C category.
Emergen-C
is available in 19 varieties of drink mix nutritional supplements, two
tablets and four ready-to-drink beverages. The products are sold in
health food stores, supermarkets, drug stores, mass merchandisers and
club stores nationwide. With a rich history of innovation and an eye to
the future, Alacer is proud to produce a wide selection of
nutritionally enhanced products that provide fast, fun ways for
consumers to boost their health and energy, naturally.