Kellogg Buys Pringles For $2.7 Billion

Everyone's favorite potato chip stack in a tube was sold from Proctor & Gamble to Kellogg recently, in a whopping $2.7 billion cash deal.

The sale will let Proctor & Gamble leave the food industry completely, while Kellogg's international snack business will reportedly triple.

Pringles hit supermarket shelves in 1968, after 10 years of experimenting with flavors and packaging. Initially, the chips didn't sell well and many called for P&G to dump the product; it wasn't until 1980 that P&G tweaked the flavor, amped up advertising, and made the chips a hit.

"We begin with dried potatoes that are cooked and mashed with just enough water and other wholesome ingredients added to form a smooth potato dough. Then, the dough is cut and placed on Pringle-shaped carriers (for that one-of-a-kind shape), fried, and seasoned just right on one side," the Pringles web site says.

As for the recognizable Pringles can, creator Fredric Baur, who also invented the uniform saddle shape, was so proud of his can that he asked that his ashes be buried in one.

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