Examining the Corporate Social Responsibility Claims of Kelloggs

profitability, slowing demand growth and a surge in private label sales threatened to undermine the

This report examines the UK market for Breakfast Cereals. The market has grown substantially in the last 5 years with a high demand for quick meals in the morning due to busy lifestyles. This has had an advantage to the sales of the market.

External Environmental Analysis We chose Kellogg’s cereal category because Kellogg’s has over 100 years history and we have14 kinds of breakfast cereal products. Our products sell to 180 countries across the world. Our mission is still to provide you and your family with better breakfasts that lead to better days, and now you eat flake corn is the same way W.K. did back in 1898. It just tastes better that way. Kellogg’s cereal provides a variety of nutrition’s cereals that deliver the benefits of grains, and provide important nutrients like iron, B vitamins, zinc and fibre.

The cereal industry is very adamant on using a differentiation strategy to make one’s brand stand out in the minds of certain people. The companies break down the public into different target markets; and then make products that will be attractive to their target markets. Companies make different brands for young kids, teenagers, adults, and people who are health conscience. Currently, there are 387 different brands of cereal sold in the United States and each family is estimated to purchase 17 different brands per year. (O’Connor, Amy) Companies continue to brainstorm for new product ideas to attract the various market segmentations.

PepsiCo is a huge, multi-billion-dollar company that invests its time and money into creating loveable and lasting products for consumers all over the world. PepsiCo has been on the rise for years and if things continue to prosper like they do know, they should be a lasting company for many more years to continue. PepsiCo relates to their customers and continues to create new and improved products that bring publicity to their company, while still producing the recognizable products that that they are known for.

The threat of customers finding substitute products from other manufacturers in the food industry is high. In the ready-to-eat breakfast cereals segment, General Mills’ primary business focus, there are a variety of similar products being

1) The Big Three firms, Kellogg, General Mills, and Philip Morris, formed practically an oligopoly in the RTE cereal market. Their price and cost levels moved in lockstep, following signals sent mostly by the biggest player, Kellogg, while their tactics could be used against outside competition, as suggested in the scenario below. Although RTE cereal is a basic food item and production technology stabilized for about half century, the industry had effective barriers to entry. The competition between incumbents was friendly while most of the inputs came from a perfectly competitive market, agriculture. Major customers, the food stores, were coopted in perpetuating barriers to entry in the form of shelf space “slotting”.

For the rest of the meal I’ll still need tomato sauce, I need spinach leaves, onions, garlic cloves, pecans, and basil leaves. Fortunately the basil and pecan nuts are easier to acquire because I happen to have garden at my house which does produce both of these ingredients. As for the other ingredients, the rest is purchased at the store, the only distinction is a great deal of this is not packaged previously, instead it’s fresh produce so the manufacturing process is not the same. For several years, Kroger has operated with agriculturalists and contractors to transport locally produced merchandises to grocery stores. There are two main farms specifically in Arizona where Kroger does obtain some of their fresh vegetables. These include Rousseau

Tyson foods is a very large food company based out of Springdale Arkansas primarily known for its’ meat products. Donnie Smith the CEO of Tyson foods knows that those who dislike meat production and even meat-eating may never really like his company. Other consumers may wonder if Tyson Foods is just another profit-centered corporation that only cares about the bottom line. Modern companies need to be considered credible by their stakeholders. How can a company like Tyson foods demonstrate corporate social responsibility in a meaningful way that is not shallow, devoid of real significance? Tyson Foods decided to focus on ending childhood hunger.

Kellogg’s seeks to concentrate on nutrition and physical fitness through product donation for the hungry, as well as programs that educate families about nutrition that nourishing families so they can have a healthy living’(Kelloggcompany, 2011).

CSR is the concept that businesses should balance profit-making with activities that benefit society, as Bruce Dayton believed “businesses should act in the best interest of society” (Target, 2015). Accordingly, Target’s commitment is to design tomorrow’s Target through our value chain, building community and creating a great workplace. As such, its 5 core beliefs: innovation, leadership, growth, inclusivity, and community influence its ongoing commitment to CSR. Furthermore, they achieve this by concentrating on:

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is explained as a strategy, a function of public relations and theory. The corporate social responsibility has developed into a practice that is necessary for companies that desire to have and maintain a positive image, retain their employees and improve the brand (Moura-Leite & Padgett, 2011). McKesson is a pharmaceutical solutions provider that provides technology, products, and resources for healthcare facilities.

Carroll (1991) organized different corporate social responsibilities as a four-layered pyramid model and called it the pyramid of responsibilities. The four different responsibilities - economical, legal, ethical and philanthropic are the layers of the pyramid. Corporate social responsibility involves the conduct of a business so that it is economically profitable, law abiding, ethical and socially supportive. To be socially responsible then means that profitability and obedience to the law are foremost conditions when discussing the firm’s ethics and the extent to which it supports the society in which it exists with contributions of money, time and talent”. And the different layers in the pyramid help managers

giant multinational breakfast foods company United Cereal, portrays the background of a launch decision for a new cereal product, the ‘Healthy Berry Crunch’.

The Kellogg’s company shows a serious commitment to ethics. In 2007, they were the top U.S. company for ethics in the food and beverage industry; third globally.[1] Their role in the food and beverage industry has been maintained for over 100 years, and they produce their products globally, spanning 180 countries. They produce food items such as cookies, crackers, cereal, baking needs, and many other snack items commonly consumed.