The Kellogg Company has named a former Nature’s Bounty CEO and Coca-Cola executive as it’s new CEO.

Its Board of Directors unanimously elected Steven A. Cahillane as CEO of the global cereal and snack company effective Oct. 2, 2017. The news comes as current CEO John A. Bryant has decided to retire.

Cahillane most recently served as President and CEO of The Nature's Bounty Co., a leading health and wellness business.

Cahillane will also join the company's Board of Directors, effective Oct. 2, 2017. Bryant will continue as Executive Chairman of the Board until March 15, 2018, at which time Cahillane will assume the role of Chairman and CEO.

"It has been my pleasure to serve as the CEO of Kellogg Company over the past seven years," Bryant says. "I am even more confident in the future of our company today than at any other time in my 20 years with Kellogg. I've decided that the time is right to hand over the reins to a new leader who can continue the transformation of this great company.

Bryant says Cahillane is a proven leader with an exceptional track record of creating shareholder value. And he pointed to his work with Nature’s Bound, as well as his senior leadership roles at blue-chip consumer packaged goods companies including Coca-Cola and AB lnBev, "

Specifically, Cahillane has been president and CEO of Nature's Bounty since 2014. In this role, he successfully aligned the company with key health and wellness trends, established a thriving e-commerce division and created significant shareholder value.

Prior to this, Cahillane spent seven years with The Coca-Cola Co., most recently serving as President of Coca-Cola Americas, the global beverage maker's largest business with $25 billion in sales.

Under his leadership, Coca-Cola Americas' performance improved significantly as the business achieved record revenues and delivered consistent market share gains. Other roles there included President and CEO of the Coca-Cola Refreshments business, President of Coca-Cola Enterprises in North America and President of Coca-Cola Enterprises in Europe.

Cahillane previously spent eight years with AB lnBev, the world's largest brewing company, in various senior leadership roles including Chief Commercial Officer, in which he led commercial strategy, global marketing, sponsorships, innovation and research following the 2004 merger of lnterbrew and AmBev. His tenure with the company also included serving as CEO for the company's lnterbrew U.K. and Labatt USA subsidiaries.

Cahillane, 52, earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a bachelor's degree in political science from Northwestern University. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and on the Board of the Purpose Built Communities Foundation. Cahillane is also a member of the Board of Trustees of Northwestern University.