Kellogg plans to buy protein-bar RXBAR for $600 million.
Kellogg, the Battle Creek-based maker of Corn Flakes and other cereals, plans to buy protein-bar RXBAR for $600 million, a move aimed at adding a new product to appeal to younger customers and boost sales.
The announcement comes as no surprise as Kellogg tries to diversify its products, acquiring Pringles and other brands, and Millennials, the generation born sometime between the early 1980s to the early 2000s, seem to be losing their appetite for sugary cereal.
Cahillane, who was president and CEO of vitamin and nutritional supplement maker Nature’s Bounty for about three years, becomes the new CEO, as John Bryant stepped down from the position.
Kellogg said RXBAR, which is owned by the Chicago Bar Co., would continue to operate as a standalone business. Chicago Bar, which is based in Chicago, was founded five years ago and is expected to have net sales of about $120 million in 2017.
Kellogg, which started in 1906 after a failed attempt to make granola led W.K. Kellogg and his brother John Harvey Kellogg to make corn flakes, has a multitude of brands, including Keebler, Special K, Frosted Flakes, Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies, Cheez-It, Eggo, Mini-Wheats and Pop-Tarts.