An American breakfast icon is about to get a sweet new owner.
WK Kellogg — the Chicago-headquartered maker of Froot Loops and Frosted Flakes — is nearing a $3 billion deal to join forces with Italian confectionery giant Ferrero, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The move would merge two food powerhouses under one roof.
Ferrero, the world’s third-largest candy company, already sells popular grocery products like Ferrero Rocher, Nutella, Keebler, and Butterfinger.
The chocolatier has been on an acquisition spree since 2018. At the time, the Italian company bought multiple chocolate brands from Nestlé.
Now, the new deal is an even deeper push into the American market for Ferrero, which recently announced new US-focused products including peanut Nutella and Dr Pepper-flavored Tic Tacs.
Meanwhile, WK Kellogg — which spun off from its parent company last year — has been struggling to regain momentum.
The American cereal company’s May earnings report had some stinging numbers, including a 6.2 percent decline in sales.
WK Kellogg brought in $663 million for the quarter, compared to $707 million in the same three-month period in 2024.
‘We saw consumers continue to focus on health and nutrition,’ Gary Pilnick, the company’s CEO, said.
‘We believe our portfolio is well-positioned to meet the needs of our consumers, and we are taking further actions to accelerate our plans in this area.’
Shares of WK Kellogg’s spiked in after-hours trading following the news.
The cereal-maker’s stock price jumped over 48 percent in the minutes after the reports.
WK Kellogg and Ferrero did not immediately respond to request for comment.
American grocery changes
The cereal and candy maker deal comes as multiple grocery brands go through some major changes.
The company behind Nutella has been making moves to entice American consumers Grocery stores have been going through massive changes as consumer preferences shift to online sales and fresher produce
Del Monte Foods Inc, the 138-year-old company behind some of America’s most recognizable pantry staples, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in early July.
For decades, the company has produced canned fruits and vegetables for American grocery consumers.
But it was impacted by a consumer shift toward fresher produce.
‘Del Monte says that consumer demand has declined causing it to incur increased costs related to surplus inventory,’ Sarah Foss, the head of legal and restructuring at Debtwire, told DailyMail.com at the time.
Meanwhile, Kroger, the grocery store that was previously at the center of a contentious merger agreement with Albertsons, announced it is shutting down dozens of stores this year.
‘Kroger is committed to reinvesting these savings back into the customer experience, and as a result, this will not impact full-year guidance,’ the company said in its recent earnings report.
The company doesn’t expect any layoffs due to the closures.