Fire Breaks Out In Cereal Dryer At Battle Creek Kellogg Plant Monday

Battle Creek Firefighters had to be called to deal with a fire at our local Kellogg’s cereal plant Monday night.

The Battle Creek Fire Department says that just after 7pm Monday, seven units were called to the large Kellogg manufacturing plant on Porter St. on reports of a machine that caught fire. Personnel from the plant escorted firefighters to the location of the blaze, which was inside of a machine that’s used to dry cereal. Crews worked to contain the fire to the cereal dryer, and they managed to do so, and prevent the flames from further extension. No injuries occurred as a result.

The cause of the fire is now being looked into by Kellogg officials.

According to the EPA, drying is usually the last step before packaging for Ready-to-Eat (RTE) cereals. The procedure "is typically performed at temperatures below 121 C (250 F) and under controlled humidity, which prevents case hardening of the grit and greatly decreases the time needed for drying to the desired moisture level."