ECOLAB INC. — Director's Dealing 2007

Dec 8, 2007

SEC Form 4 — Statement of Changes in Beneficial Ownership

Issuer: ECOLAB INC (ECL)
CIK: 0000031462
Period of Report: 2007-12-05

Reporting Person: BELL LAWRENCE T (SVP, GC and Secretary)

Non-Derivative Transactions

Date	Security	Code	Shares	Price	A/D	Holdings After	Ownership
2007-03-08	Common Stock	G	820	—	Disposed	106348	Direct
2007-03-08	Common Stock	G	520	—	Disposed	105828	Direct
2007-03-08	Common Stock	G	520	—	Disposed	105308	Direct
2007-03-08	Common Stock	G	520	—	Acquired	3123	Indirect
2007-03-08	Common Stock	G	520	—	Acquired	3231	Indirect

Derivative Transactions

Date	Security	Exercise Price	Code	Shares	A/D	Expiration	Underlying	Ownership
2007-12-05	Employee Stock Option (Right to Buy)	$49.42	A	39400	Acquired	2017-12-05	Common Stock (39400)	Direct

Holdings (Non-Derivative)

Security	Shares	Ownership
Common Stock	8431.170	Indirect

Footnotes

F1: Transfer by reporting person to one of his daughters.

F2: Transfer by reporting person to a second daughter.

F3: Number of UNITS owned by the reporting person in the Ecolab Stock Fund of the Ecolab Savings Plan (401(k) Plan) as of October 31, 2007. Includes 215.352 UNITS acquired by the reporting person in the Ecolab Stock Fund of the Ecolab Savings Plan since the date of his last report. (The 8,431.170 UNITS are the equivalent of approximately 15,740 SHARES of the issuer's Common Stock.)

F4: The option will be exercisable, on a cumulative basis, as to one-third of the option shares (excluding any fractional portion less than one share), on each of the first and second anniversaries of the date of grant and as to the remaining shares on the third anniversary of the date of grant; provided, however, that if a Change in Control (as that term is defined in the 2005 Ecolab Inc. Stock Incentive Plan) will occur, then the option, if it has been outstanding for at least six months from the date of grant, will become immediately exercisable in full.