W.K. Kellogg

W.K. Kellogg - At the age of fourteen, Will Keith Kellogg (1860-1951) began working as a salesman for his father's broom business. Later, he worked with his brother, Dr. John Harvey Kellogg, at the Battle Creek Sanitarium.

In 1894, John, assisted by Will, developed a successful cereal flake. It was first served to the patients at the sanitarium and later sold by the Sanitas Food Company. In 1906, W. K. Kellogg launched his own food company to sell Toasted Corn Flakes cereal.

Kellogg founded the Battle Creek Toasted Corn Flake Company in 1906. He manufactured his first boxes of cereal in a three-story building on Bartlett Street at the rate of 33 cases per day.  Kellogg Company sold more than one million cases of cereal in 1909, and by 1911, the company's advertising budget had reached $1 million. In 1917, production capacity reached nine million boxes per day.

The company grew to be the largest manufacturer of ready-to-eat cereals in the world. Kellogg's early personal philanthropies included assistance to rural teachers, to British children orphaned by war, to the blind and to a number of hospitals and medical programs.

In 1930 the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, which remains one of the largest foundations in the world, was established to promote the health and well-being of children. Today, it is among the world's largest philanthropic organizations.

In 1980, United States production of Kellogg's ready-to-eat cereals required more than 110,000 bushels of corn, 225,000 pounds of bran, 9,000 bushels of wheat and 12,000 pounds of wheat germ each day. By its 100th anniversary, company sales exceeded $10 billion annually and it was the world's leading producer of cereal and a leading producer of convenience foods, including cookies, crackers, toaster pastries, cereal bars, frozen waffles, and meat alternatives. The Company's brands include Kellogg's, Keebler, Pop-Tarts, Eggo, Cheez-It, Club, Nutri-Grain, Rice Krispies, All-Bran, Special K, Mini-Wheats, Chips Deluxe, Sandies, Morningstar Farms, Famous Amos, and Kashi. Kellogg products are manufactured in 17 countries and marketed in more than 180 countries around the world.