COMPANY·HISTORIES
NAIC 311230

Breakfast Cereal Manufacturing

How the companies in this industry began, and the forces that shaped them.

22companies1858–1989founding years20still active2no longer operating
§ 01

The industry over time

Companies foundedEconomyTechnologyEnvironment
FoundedLeroux S.A.S.FoundedLeroux S.A.S.
1858
FoundedRoyal Numico N.V.FoundedRoyal Numico N.V.
1896
FoundedH.J. Heinz Company
1900
FoundedThe Quaker Oats CompanyFoundedThe Quaker Oats Company
1901
1903
TechnologyThe Wright brothers achieve powered flight.
FoundedKellogg CompanyFoundedKellogg Company
1906
1908
TechnologyThe Ford Model T brings the automobile to the middle class.
FoundedKoninklijke Wessanen nv
1913
EconomyThe Federal Reserve is created.
1914
EconomyWorld War I begins; global trade reorders.
FoundedMalt-O-Meal CompanyFoundedMalt-O-Meal Company
1919
FoundedGeneral Mills, Inc.FoundedGeneral Mills, Inc.
1928
1929
EconomyThe stock market crashes; the Great Depression begins.
FoundedWeetabix Limited
1932
1933
EconomyNew Deal reforms reshape banking and industry.
1939
EconomyWorld War II begins; wartime production surges.
1945
EconomyThe war ends; a long postwar expansion begins.
1947
TechnologyThe transistor is invented at Bell Labs.
1956
EconomyThe Interstate Highway program remakes commerce.
1958
TechnologyThe integrated circuit is demonstrated.
1962
EnvironmentSilent Spring launches the modern environmental movement.
1970
EnvironmentThe EPA is founded; environmental regulation expands.
1971
EconomyThe dollar leaves the gold standard; Nasdaq opens.
1973
EconomyThe OPEC oil embargo triggers a global shock.
1975
TechnologyThe personal-computer era begins with the Altair.
1979
EconomyA second oil crisis drives inflation higher.
1980
EnvironmentSuperfund law makes polluters pay for cleanup.
1981
TechnologyThe IBM PC launches and sets a standard.
1984
TechnologyApple ships the Macintosh; the GUI era begins.
FoundedGoodman Fielder Ltd.FoundedGoodman Fielder Ltd.
1986
1987
EconomyBlack Monday: markets fall 22% in a single day.
FoundedKraft Foods Inc.
1989
1991
TechnologyThe World Wide Web is released to the public.
1993
TechnologyThe Mosaic browser brings the web to everyone.
1995
TechnologyWindows 95 launches; the internet goes mainstream.
1997
EconomyThe Asian financial crisis rattles global markets.
EnvironmentThe Kyoto Protocol sets the first climate targets.
2000
EconomyThe dot-com bubble bursts.
2001
EconomyThe September 11 attacks; a recession follows.
2004
TechnologySocial media and Web 2.0 begin to take hold.
2007
TechnologyThe iPhone launches the smartphone era.
2008
EconomyThe global financial crisis freezes credit.
2010
TechnologyCloud computing goes mainstream for business.
2015
EnvironmentThe Paris Agreement sets global climate targets.
2020
EconomyThe COVID-19 pandemic upends the global economy.
2022
EconomyInflation spikes; central banks raise rates sharply.
2023
TechnologyGenerative AI reaches mainstream business use.
§ 02

The companies

Leroux S.A.S. →
Active · founded 1858 · France
Leroux S.A.S.
Leroux S.A.S. →
Active · founded 1858 · France
Leroux S.A.S.
Royal Numico N.V. →
Defunct · founded 1896 · The Netherlands
Fast-growing Royal Numico N.V.
Royal Numico N.V. →
Defunct · founded 1896 · The Netherlands
Fast-growing Royal Numico N.V.
H.J. Heinz Company →
Active · founded 1900
Perhaps best known for its ketchup, the H.J.
H.J. Heinz Company →
Active · founded 1900
Perhaps best known for its ketchup, the H.J.
The Quaker Oats Company →
Active · founded 1901
The product of a rocky union between three 19th-century millers, The Quaker Oats Company maintains a portfolio of…
The Quaker Oats Company →
Active · founded 1901
The product of a rocky union between three 19th-century millers, The Quaker Oats Company maintains a portfolio of…
Kellogg Company →
Active · founded 1906
Will Keith Kellogg once estimated that 42 cereal companies were launched in the breakfast-food boom during the early…
Kellogg Company →
Active · founded 1906
Will Keith Kellogg once estimated that 42 cereal companies were launched in the breakfast-food boom during the early…
Koninklijke Wessanen nv →
Active · founded 1913 · The Netherlands
Early 20th Century:Company exits from the cheese, seed, and grain trades and begins focusing on processed products.
Koninklijke Wessanen nv →
Active · founded 1913 · The Netherlands
Early 20th Century:Company exits from the cheese, seed, and grain trades and begins focusing on processed products.
Malt-O-Meal Company →
Active · founded 1919
Early 1970s:Malt-O-Meal begins boxing private-label cereals for grocery store chains.
Malt-O-Meal Company →
Active · founded 1919
Early 1970s:Malt-O-Meal begins boxing private-label cereals for grocery store chains.
General Mills, Inc. →
Active · founded 1928
General Mills, Inc.
General Mills, Inc. →
Active · founded 1928
General Mills, Inc.
Weetabix Limited →
Active · founded 1932 · United Kingdom
Privately held, family-controlled (and some say ultra-secretive) Weetabix Limited is one of the United Kingdom's…
Weetabix Limited →
Active · founded 1932 · United Kingdom
Privately held, family-controlled (and some say ultra-secretive) Weetabix Limited is one of the United Kingdom's…
Goodman Fielder Ltd. →
Active · founded 1986 · Australia
Goodman Fielder Ltd.
Goodman Fielder Ltd. →
Active · founded 1986 · Australia
Goodman Fielder Ltd.
Kraft Foods Inc. →
Active · founded 1989
Kraft Foods Inc.
Kraft Foods Inc. →
Active · founded 1989
Kraft Foods Inc.
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