Raven Industries is a U.S manufacturer of plastic

Plastic

A plastic material is any of a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic organic solids used in the manufacture of industrial products. Plastics are typically polymers of high molecular mass, and may contain other substances to improve performance and/or reduce production costs...

, electronic, and "special apparel" products established in 1956 to make commercial and recreational hot air balloon

Hot air balloon

The hot air balloon is the oldest successful human-carrying flight technology. It is in a class of aircraft known as balloon aircraft. On November 21, 1783, in Paris, France, the first untethered manned flight was made by Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and François Laurent d'Arlandes in a hot air...

s. After its establishment the company's product offerings expanded to include items such as large plastic storage containers for use in agriculture and ski pants. It also makes polyethylene

Polyethylene

Polyethylene or polythene is the most widely used plastic, with an annual production of approximately 80 million metric tons...

 sheeting, parade inflatables, ultrasonic soil-depth control devices, and sprayer controls. The U.S. military and other government agencies are among its clients, and it was launched by a group of General Mills

General Mills

General Mills, Inc. is an American Fortune 500 corporation, primarily concerned with food products, which is headquartered in Golden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis. The company markets many well-known brands, such as Betty Crocker, Yoplait, Colombo, Totinos, Jeno's, Pillsbury, Green...

 employees including General Mills High Altitude Research division employee Ed Yost

Ed Yost

Paul Edward Yost was the American inventor of the modern hot air balloon and is referred to as the "Father of the Modern Day Hot-Air Balloon." He worked for a high altitude research division of General Mills when he helped establish Raven Industries in 1956.-Inventor:Born on a farm 7 miles...

.

Further reading

• 'CEO Interview: Raven Industries,' Wall Street Transcript, October 24, 1994.Meyer, Harvey
• 'Underdog: A Military Contractor Spreads Its Wings,' Journal of Business Strategy, September 19, 1997.
• Palmer, Jay, 'Raven Industries Enjoys Ballooning Business,' Barron's, August 17, 1992, p. 14.
• 'Raven Industries,' Implement and Tractor, January 11, 1996.'Raven Industries Acquires Norcore Plastics, Tank & Technology,' Composite News, February 10, 1997.
• 'Raven Industries Outlook,' Dow Jones News Service, August 12, 1983.'Raven Industries Sees Net Up Strongly in 4th Quarter,' Dow Jones News Service, November 25, 1983.
• Slovak, Julianne, 'Raven Industries,' Fortune, May 21, 1990.