2009-11-24 00:11:04 -

North American Salt Company and Sifto Canada Corp, subsidiaries of Compass Minerals (NYSE: CMP), today announced the introduction of Thawrox® Treated Salt, a novel highway deicing salt product that incorporates plant sugars for improved efficacy.

Thawrox combines naturally occurring sugars from renewable sources such as sugar cane and corn with salt to melt snow and ice at lower temperatures and keep the salt where it is spread. Its increased efficiency means less Thawrox is required to clear the same amount of road surface.

Thawrox provides numerous benefits, such as.

- Keeps roads safe and clear at temperatures as low as minus 15 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 26 degrees Celsius), well below that of traditional salt or salt brine systems.


- Causes less “bounce and scatter”

than traditional salt, so it stays on the road surface where it is needed.


- Lowers fuel and labor costs and causes less wear and tear on application equipment, because it takes less Thawrox to treat the same amount of road surface than untreated salt, and it remains effective longer.


- Replaces the application of abrasives like sand that are added to salt in some cases to provide traction in extremely cold weather, because Thawrox works in lower temperatures.

“Thawrox will allow salt users to clear roads in the most challenging weather conditions and realize cost and efficiency benefits,” said Keith Clark, vice president and general manager of North American highway.

“Because Thawrox is premixed, it allows municipalities to get the benefits of a high-performance deicing product without the investment in specialized mixing equipment.”

The product will be marketed under the name “Maxifonte” in French-speaking regions of Canada.

About Compass Minerals


Based in the Kansas City metropolitan area, Compass Minerals is a leading producer of minerals, including salt, sulfate of potash specialty fertilizer and magnesium chloride. The company provides highway deicing salt to customers in North America and the United Kingdom and specialty fertilizer to growers worldwide. Compass Minerals also produces consumer deicing and water conditioning products, ingredients used in consumer and commercial foods, and other mineral-based products for consumer, agricultural and industrial applications. Compass Minerals also provides records management services to businesses throughout the U.K.

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Compass MineralsPeggy Landon, 913-344-9315Director of
Investor Relations and Corporate Communications