Kellogg's $5M a year CEO under fire for telling people to 'eat corn flakes for dinner' to save money amid rising prices
Kit Roberts
Featured Image Credit: CNBC/Newscast/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
The CEO of cereal company Kellogg's has been criticised after suggesting that people struggling with the cost of living should eat cereal for dinner.
CEO Gary Pilnick, who is paid $5 million a year, became the CEO of Kellogg's back in October.
Pilnick acknowledged that many people are struggling with the rising cost of living, before suggesting that one way to afford food would be to eat cereal for dinner.
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When asked if this messaging might 'land the wrong way', Pilnick replied that he didn't think that was an issue.
The interview comes as many people in the US face increasing costs across the board including in housing, fuel, and food prices.
Pilnick told CNBC: "The cereal category has always been quite affordable and it tends to be a great destination when consumers are under pressure."
He continued: "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."
The CEO went on to talk about how recent trends have indicated that more people are eating cereal for dinner.
He said: "It's landing really well right now. It turns out that over 25 percent of our consumption is outside the breakfast occasion.
"A lot of it's at dinner. And that occasion continues to grow."
He also explained that they are also changing the size of their packs, saying: "We talk about making sure that we have the right pack at the right price in the right place.
"So having a different sized pack that'll have a different price point, that'll take some pressure off the consumer while they're shopping."
The interview has sparked fury online, with many people calling Pilnick 'out of touch' with the struggles that ordinary people face.
One person replied: "What an insult. I’m sure that’s what he feed his kids."
Another said: " People can no longer afford to feed their families and the best anyone can offer is peasant gruel with not only no nutritional value, but negative health consequences."
A third posted: "Gruel is a food consisting of some type of cereal—such as ground oats, wheat, rye, or rice a staple diet for peasants."
UNILAD has reached out to Kellogg's for comment.
While inflation in the US is slowing, food prices are one of the costs of living that is still increasing.
Between December 2023 and January 2024, food prices are nonetheless rising at a faster pace than the Consumer Price Index meaning that it is becoming more expensive to put food on the table.