WK Kellogg Co. CEO Gary Pilnick was widely ridiculed across social media recently amid boycott calls after suggesting families should eat cereal for dinner to combat inflation-spiked food prices.
“The cereal category has always been quite affordable, and it tends to be a great destination when consumers are under pressure,” Pilnick said during an interview on CNBC. “If you think about the cost of cereal for a family versus what they might otherwise do, that’s going to be much more affordable.”
He estimated that a bowl of cereal with milk and fruit costs less than a dollar.
Kellogg’s cereal brands include Frosted Flakes, Fruit Loops, Corn Flakes, and Raisin Bran. Kellogg’s also sells Pop-Tarts, Pringles, Eggo, and Kellogg’s Oats.
His comments referenced Kellogg’s “Cereal for Dinner” campaign, which ends with the slogan: “Give chicken the night off.” The campaign launched in August 2022 when the rate of inflation reached a 40-year high. Kellogg promoted cereal for dinner as a “low-prep, low-mess and low-price meal option.”
Some …