Latest news with #WKKellogg
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Britons have just 23 hours of ‘genuinely free' time a week – so much for labour-saving technology
As the AI revolution heralds a new dawn – or living nightmare – in the world of work, I find my thoughts turning increasingly to Kellogg's. Yes, the cereal company, and not just because cereal is all I have time to eat in between my many jobs. The Kellogg's factory in Battle Creek, Michigan, was where, in the early 20th century, the dream of a world free of work and rich in recreation first took off – and even, for a few brief shining years, soared. In 1930, the 'managed work reduction' movement – seeking to take advantage of the productivity gains enabled by automation to usher in a golden age of leisure – found an influential champion in WK Kellogg. Intrigued by the utopian possibilities, Kellogg opted to shorten his factory's workday from eight hours to six, and increased daily shifts from three to four. The 30-hour working week was widely taken up by US business leaders as a smart and progressive strategy – not just protecting against the threat of mass unemployment caused by mechanisation, but also spreading the benefits. Forbes magazine reported the following year that 'thinking men in industry are saying … 'Shorter hours for men and longer hours for machines'.' By the 1932 US presidential election, the six-hour workday was the favoured solution to national unemployment, and hours were expected to continue to decline nationally. 'No one thought it would stop,' says historian Benjamin Kline Hunnicutt, the author of Kellogg's Six-Hour Day and Free Time: The Forgotten American Dream. 'For the most part, people were optimistic: the definition of progress was higher wages and shorter hours.' And yet what we wound up with, not just in the US but globally – as you will doubtless be aware – was not 'mass leisure' or even shorter days made possible by machines, but longer hours spent toiling on them. By 1940, support for managed work reduction had all but evaporated, reflecting missteps by government, labour and industry – and a breakdown in mutual commitment to the vision. Today the dream of 'work reduction' is long dead, even forgotten. OECD data shows that the average time spent on leisure has decreased since the 1980s, even in economies (such as the UK's) that have grown in that time. Official time-use statistics suggest that recreation has been declining even since 2020, particularly for women, younger people and those on lower incomes. Time is money, they say – but it seems many of us feel impoverished in both. Recent research by Lloyds Bank found that the average Briton has only 23 'genuinely free' hours a week (from a total of 168). And 86% of respondents said they needed more. But the Lloyds report had a sunny spin, proclaiming that 'emerging technology' could free up nearly two hours a day within the next two years. It casts a wide net, pointing to robot vacuum cleaners and driverless cars (and Lloyds's new banking tools!), along with further advances in automation and AI, as capable of creating more time in our day. These shifts are already under way. Many people in all lines of work are routinely using AI tools such as ChatGPT – and for more involved, consequential or sensitive tasks than you may imagine. ChatGPT can achieve in seconds work that could take a person hours, often to a passable degree. But are the time savings created going towards more free time or more work? Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates has predicted that AI will replace people 'for most things' within a decade, ushering in a two-day working week (and a five-day weekend). And yet, right now, even a four-day working week seems like a pipe dream, let alone the drastic measures (such as universal basic income) that will be necessary to absorb the shock of mass redundancy. Even we, the workers, are sleepwalking towards the future. From my reporting, it seems people are using ChatGPT not to clock off earlier, or even on time, but to get more done and keep on top of their seemingly endless workload. A century ago, there was a collective desire and will to use technology to manage work, underpinned by the belief that leisure was akin to freedom. It was assumed that people would make choices to free up more time to spend with family, or on their hobbies. But that vision was tested – and eventually crushed – by the emerging view of progress as more money with which to buy more things, and of work as 'the centre of life'. The Kellogg's workers eventually voted in 1983 to abandon the six-hour shift, swayed by the threat of redundancies – and the promise of pay rises. Overtime was widely seen as a fair trade-off for less leisure. As one dissenting employee put it: 'The work hogs won.' I first learned this in 2020 from an article by Hunnicutt. Reading of the flagging commitment of Kellogg's to the six-hour shift made me feel the same agonised paralysis as watching a character in a horror film drift towards a slow and painful death. 'Nooo!' I wanted to shout. 'It's a trap!' I fear we are at a similar crossroads now. New technologies really could give us more free time, shift the locus of life and meaning away from work, and even restructure society towards recreation and connection; they will replace vast numbers of us in our jobs. We already know that hard limits to growth exist, even if we fail to meaningfully acknowledge them. How we weather the change ahead will depend on our vision and daring, and how big we are prepared to dream. It's not enough to recognise the possibilities, though that's a start, says Hunnicutt. We need to believe in the merits of leisure, and 'non-material growth – something besides more money and more work, forever'. History shows that this 'respected, respectable, inspiring, historical alternative' is possible, even under capitalism. But if we don't fight for our free time, we'll just find more ways to waste it at work. Elle Hunt is a freelance journalist
Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Kraft Heinz to stop launching new products with artificial colors
June 17 (Reuters) - Kraft Heinz said on Tuesday it would not launch products with artificial colors in the United States effective immediately, and would aim to eliminate synthetic dyes from existing items by the end of 2027. The Ketchup maker said that nearly 90% of its U.S. product net sales are already free of food, drug & cosmetic colors — also known as artificial colors or synthetic dyes. This move comes a few months after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. outlined plans to remove synthetic food dyes from the U.S. food supply as part of a broader move to address chronic diseases and conditions such as obesity among Americans. Many packaged food companies, including W.K. Kellogg (KLG.N), opens new tab and Tyson Foods (TSN.N), opens new tab, have been working on reformulating existing products and introducing new items without artificial dyes. In early June, Walmart-owned (WMT.N), opens new tab Sam's Club said it would eliminate over 40 ingredients, including artificial colors and aspartame, from its private label brand Member's Mark, by the end of this year. Kraft Heinz said that for the small portion of products that currently contain artificial colors it plans to remove the dyes where they are not critical, or replace them with natural colors. The Jell-O maker added that it would also look to reinvent products with new colors where a matching natural replacement is not available. It said the company was also working with its brand licensees to encourage them to remove artificial colors as well.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Walmart's Sam's Club to remove synthetic dyes from private brand by year end
(Reuters) -Walmart-owned Sam's Club said on Thursday it would eliminate over 40 ingredients, including artificial colors and aspartame, from private label brand Member's Mark by the end of this year. Under the initiative, called 'Made Without', Sam's Club is altering its food products and beverages to offer items that are in tandem with the evolving dietary preferences of customers as more people, mainly Gen Z and millennials, turn health conscious. The move comes a couple of months after Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr laid out plans to remove synthetic food dyes from the U.S. food supply, in a broader move to address chronic diseases and health conditions such as obesity among Americans. Most of the packaged food companies are also working on their existing products as well as on introducing items without artificial dyes. W.K. Kellogg is reformulating its cereals served in schools to not include artificial dyes, and has said it would not launch any products with the dyes beginning next year. Tyson Foods is also "proactively reformulating" food products containing petroleum-based synthetic dyes, which according to the company were to be eliminated from its production process by May end. Sam's Club has already rolled out cookies and snacks without artificial colors. The retailer is also offering fresh sushi as part of its 'Made Without' program. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
26-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Battle Creek cemetery closed for months due to storm damage
BATTLE CREEK, Mich. (WOOD) — During Memorial Day weekend and beyond, a Battle Creek cemetery is closed due to storm damage from last week. Oak Hill Cemetery experienced 'extensive damage' during , according to a social media post by the cemetery. It will be closed for up to 2.5 months to clean up the damage. NWS confirms 2 tornadoes touched down near Battle Creek A sign that read 'Closed due to weather damage' was posted on the front gate Sunday. Each year, tourists worldwide visit the cemetery to see the final resting places of several historical figures like W. K. Kellogg, John Harvey Kellogg , C.W. Post and Sojourner Truth. 'We are saddened by the news, especially with it being Memorial Day this weekend,' wrote Oak Hill Cemetery. For more information, you can call Oak Hill's office at 269.964.7321. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Breakfast cereal is in dire need of a makeover
This story was originally published on Food Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Food Dive newsletter. After years of shrinking sales, cereal is no longer the star of breakfast. Now, food giants like General Mills and WK Kellogg are plotting how to get the former staple back on the table. Shifts in morning routines, rising costs and cereal's sugar-laden image have dragged down the category for years. But as consumers become even more concerned with inflation, those declines have recently accelerated, and companies are making it more of a priority to turn around the cereal category. At Froot Loops maker WK Kellogg, first-quarter sales declined 6.2% compared to last year. A similar story is playing out at its competitors. General Mills CEO Jeff Harmening told investors in March that cereal's performance "wasn't great," while Post Holdings, which owns brands like Fruity Pebbles, recently closed two cereal plants amid headwinds in the category. Many cereal giants are beginning to lean into consumer demand for healthier foods, noting that shoppers are willing to pay more for offerings they perceive to have more nutritional value. Upstarts like Magic Spoon, which offers a high-protein and no-sugar cereal, have taken away market share from traditional stalwarts. PepsiCo's Life brand debuted a multigrain cereal, Mighty Life, this year aimed at boosting immunity. 'It's a real dichotomy. You see some of the more premium organic natural [cereal] marketed as healthier for you …. doing well in the category while the overall category is not performing well,' Jeff Zadoks, chief operating officer of Post Holdings, told investors this month. 'There's a pocket of consumers that are spending for what they perceive as better for them, and are willing to pay essentially whatever necessary to get that type of product.' To reach that pocket of consumers, big companies are moving to relaunch big-name brands with added protein options or lower sugar. Kellogg debuted Special K Protein, while General Mills introduced Cheerios Protein. 'As we're seeing a shift in the category, we need to shift with it,' Kellogg CEO Gary Pilnick said on an earnings call in early May. Companies are also pouring more into marketing or redesigns to remake cereal's image as sugary or unhealthy. WK Kellogg faced protests to remove artificial dyes from its cereals, and manufacturers now face pressure from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to phase out synthetic colors as part of his 'Make America Healthy Again' initiative. 'We do believe the entire cereal category should be perceived better from a health perspective,' Pilnick said. WK Kellogg intends to focus more on health and wellness brands, including Special K and Kashi, which is being relaunched. Pilnick said consumer interest in health and nutrition is 'more than a fad,' and the company is accelerating plans to lean into those better-for-you attributes. 'While there are smaller brands in the market that are winning, we could do that, too,' Pilnick told investors. Recommended Reading Post Holdings sees cereal demand dip as Gen Z seeks healthier breakfasts
