Vaseline Shortage

As a result of recent increases in crude oil prices, profit margins for companies making products derived from petroleum have declined. Many of these companies are looking for alternative solutions. The Unilever Corporation, for example, the makers of Vaseline, are looking towards alternative, non-petroleum bases for their popular product.

Between March 2006 and December 2007, quarterly earnings for the Vaseline line dropped 16.5% prompting the company to research switching to a soy-based product. In June of 2007, a report in the Wall Street Journal leaked that the company was researching alternatives bases for the Vaseline line. The news sparked a panic that instigated regional stockpiling of vaseline. Many people were fearful of losing a product they had used for years. Minnesota, which is the highest per capita user of Vaseline, due to both the cold temperatures as well as social reasons, was hit the hardest. Vaseline could not be found anywhere in the St. Paul/Minneapolis area. As a result, tanker trucks were brought in and people filled any containers they had to stockpile.

In the coming months, with crude oil prices expected to continue to rise, other companies may reach similar thresholds with their products, making it cost effective to search for substitute ingredients or to stop production entirely on certain lines. Products including Neutrogena's cream-based and Avalon's aloe-based moisturizers have raised record earnings this quarter as people turn to these more affordable alternatives.