Ferrero Group Names Jean-Baptiste Santoul COO of its WK Kellogg Co
Ferrero Group named Jean-Baptiste Santoul chief operating officer of its WK Kellogg Co business, apparently the top officer of the American cereal company acquired last year. At the same time, Ferrero announced Gary Pilnick, chairman and CEO since WK Kellogg Co’s spin-off from Kellogg Co. in 2023, departed the company at the end of 2025.
Santoul was chief sales & business development officer at Ferrero Group in the company’s Luxembourg headquarters, where he led global commercial frameworks and enterprise-wide growth and transformation initiatives. He previously held the role of president & managing director of Ferrero France.
Earlier in his career, Santoul held leadership positions at Henkel across France, Germany, the Benelux region and North Africa. He began his career at Unilever in brand management.
“This is a pivotal time for WK Kellogg Co and for the future of cereal in North America – the category Mr. Kellogg himself created,” said Santoul. “Our company’s rich heritage and portfolio of iconic brands have been part of consumers’ lives for generations, and today we’re poised to lead the category with renewed energy.”
Ferrero noted Pilnick successfully launched WK Kellogg Co, led the development and execution of its strategy and was instrumental in the $3.1 billion sale to Ferrero. He had been with Kellogg 23 years.
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Dave Fusaro
Editor in Chief
Dave Fusaro has served as editor in chief of Food Processing magazine since 2003. Dave has 30 years experience in food & beverage industry journalism and has won several national ASBPE writing awards for his Food Processing stories. Dave has been interviewed on CNN, quoted in national newspapers and he authored a 200-page market research report on the milk industry. Formerly an award-winning newspaper reporter who specialized in business writing, he holds a BA in journalism from Marquette University. Prior to joining Food Processing, Dave was Editor-In-Chief of Dairy Foods and was Managing Editor of Prepared Foods.