By Ruth Bender
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
PARIS -(Dow Jones)- Kellogg Co. (K), the U.S. largest cereal maker, Wednesday said it has awarded the majority of its global advertising business to French media company Publicis Groupe SA (PUB.FR)'s Leo Burnett agency.
"Kellogg will consolidate North American, European and Latin American brand-building support with Leo Burnett," Kellogg spokesman Kris Charles said in an e-mailed statement, adding that the new account configuration will be operational by year-end.
Kellogg also said it will consolidate its Asia Pacific account with WPP PLC's (WPP.LN) agency JWT and that it will expand communications research with WPP units Taylor Nelson Sofres and Millward Brown.
Kellogg didn't say how much the deals are worth.
However, a source close to the matter said the account that goes to Publicis is worth about EUR300 million.
"As Kellogg Company continues to optimize its marketing model, the company has identified the need to maximize the effectiveness and efficiency of its agency partnerships to enable more scalable thinking, ideation and ad execution, and to enhance brand consistency and strategic alignment across the portfolio," Charles said in the statement.
-By Ruth Bender, Dow Jones Newswires; +33140171754; ruth.bender@dowjones.com