Ferrero will acquire WK Kellogg in a $3.1B deal, adding top cereal brands like Frosted Flakes and Special K to its growing portfolio.

Italy's Ferrero has continued its U.S. spending spree with its proposed acquisition of famous cereal maker WK Kellogg amid wider food manufacturer consolidation.

The transaction marks the end of Battle Creek's run as a quintessential company town in Michigan, where the name "Kellogg" graces almost everything.

In one of the most significant acquisitions in the food industry, Italian food giant Ferrero has acquired American cereal giant Kellogg's for $3.1 billion (£2.3 billion), making popular food brands such as Kellogg's Frosted Flakes,

-Private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, which owns a stake in grocer Albertsons, and billionaire investor Dean Metropoulos teamed up in an unsuccessful bid for cereal maker WK Kellogg, according to three sources familiar with the matter.

Officials are welcoming an Italian sweets company to town as it finalizes a mega deal to buy an iconic Michigan company that helped redefine breakfast. Ferrero Group — the makers of Ferrero Rocher, Nutella and a slew of other tasty treats — is set to buy Battle Creek-based WK Kellogg Co,