Is the Kellogg’s Strike Causing a Cereal Shortage?

The possibility of a cereal shortage is very real.  However, it's not the fault of the striking employees of Kellogg's.

Yesterday Kellogg's employees went on strike in Battle Creek, Omaha, Lancaster, and Memphis following the expiration of a union contract.  The union employees are fighting for a living wage and good benefits.  The brakes were slammed on production early Tuesday as a large number of employees took to the streets according to NBC Miami,

Roughly 1,400 workers went on strike, but it wasn't immediately clear how much the supply of Frosted Flakes or any of the company's other iconic brands would be disrupted.

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This strike is just another ingredient to the perfect storm that may result in a nationwide cereal shortage.  An article published on BakeryandSnacks.com two months before the strike, points out multiple factors that will likely lead to a shortage.

• A 10-day pandemic lockdown in Malaysia
• Civil unrest in South Africa
• Vendor labor shortages
• Shortage of ingredients

BakeryandSnack.com obtained this information from Kellogg's CEO Steve Cahillane.  The popular cereal company based in Battle Creek, Michigan has been in talks for the last year with the employee's union over the now-expired contract.  Cahillane didn't mention a possible strike as a factor during that August conference call.  However, it's not unreasonable to imagine that was part of the concern.

Kellogg's isn't the only cereal maker in the U.S.  Actually, they're not the only cereal maker in Battle Creek, Michigan.  A story was published in May of this year from Bloomberg.com that shined the light on a worker shortage at Post.  During a conference call, Post CEO Robert Vitale said that some of the issues are "too severe to manage."  A major factor is that Post and companies in their supply chain desperately need more employees.

One factor that nobody seems to be talking about is paranoid or opportunistic consumers.  Remember when a small number of people started buying up all of the toilet paper and hand sanitizer in 2020?  Some of them stockpiled their new items while others resold them on Amazon and eBay for 10 times the original price.  We're not doing that with Grape Nuts and Raisin Bran, right?