General Mills

General Mills, Inc.is an Americanmultinationalmanufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of theMississippi RiveratSaint Anthony FallsinMinneapolis, the company originally gained fame for being a largeflour miller. It is headquartered inGolden Valley, Minnesota, a suburb ofMinneapolis.
Today, the company markets many well-known North American brands, including Gold Medal flour,Annie's Homegrown,Lärabar, Cascadian Farm,Betty Crocker,Yoplait,Nature Valley,Totino's,Pillsbury,Old El Paso,Häagen-Dazs, as well asbreakfast cerealsunder the General Mills name, includingCheerios,Wheaties,Chex,Lucky Charms,Trix,Cocoa Puffs, and themonster cereals.
The company can trace its history to theMinneapolis Milling Company, incorporated in 1856.The company was founded by Illinois CongressmanRobert Smith, who leased power rights to flour mills operating along the west side of Saint Anthony Falls on theMississippi RiverinMinneapolis, Minnesota.Cadwallader C. Washburnacquired the company shortly after its founding and hired his brotherWilliam D. Washburnto assist in the company's development. In 1866 the Washburns got into the business themselves, building the Washburn "B" Mill at the falls. At the time, the building was considered to be so large and output so vast that it could not possibly sustain itself. However, the company succeeded, and in 1874 he built the even biggerWashburn "A" Mill.
In 1877, the mill entered a partnership withJohn Crosbyto form theWashburn-Crosby Company, producingwinter wheatflour. That same year Washburn sentWilliam Hood Dunwoodyto England to open the market for spring wheat.Dunwoody was successful and became a silent partner.
In 1878, the "A" mill was destroyed in a flourdust explosionalong with five nearby buildings, an event known as theGreat Mill Disaster. The ensuing fire led to the death of 18 workers.Construction of a new mill began immediately. Not only was the new mill safer but it also was able to produce a higher quality flour after the old grinding stones were replaced with automatic steel rollers, the first ever used.
In 1880, Washburn-Crosby flour brands won gold, silver and bronze medals at the Millers' International Exhibition inCincinnati, causing them to launch the Gold Medal flour brand.
In 1924, the company acquired a failingTwin Citiesradio station,WLAG, renaming itWCCO(from Washburn-Crosby Company).
General Millsitself was created on June 20, 1928,when Washburn-Crosby PresidentJames Ford Bellmerged Washburn-Crosby with three other mills.In the same year, General Mills acquired the Wichita Mill and Elevator Company of the industrialistFrank KellofWichita Falls,Texas. With the sale, Kell acquired cash plus stock in the corporation.
Shares of the new company's stock were first sold on the New York Stock Exchange on November 30, 1928, at $65 per share. The newly merged company paid adividendin 1928 and has continued the dividend uninterrupted ever since – one of only a few companies to pay a dividend every year since its founding.
In the 1930s, General Mills engineer, Thomas R. James, created the puffing gun, which inflated or distorted cereal pieces into puffed-up shapes. This new technology was used in 1937 to createKix cerealand in 1941 to create Cheerioats (known today as Cheerios).
In 1939, General Mills engineer Helmer Anderson created the Anderson sealer. This new device allowed for bags of flour to be sealed with glue instead of just being tied with a string.
In 1956, General Mills created the tear-strip for easily opening packages.
In 1946, General Mills established their Aeronautical Research Division with chief engineerOtto C. Winzen. This division developed high altitude balloons in conjunction with theUnited States NavyOffice of Naval Research(ONR), such as theSkyhook balloon.
In 1956, hundreds of General Mills balloons carrying reconnaissance equipment were launched by the United States government underProject Genetrixto surveilEastern bloccountries, in particular their nuclear capabilities.
The aeronautical work of General Mills done around the time of the Second World War was continued byRaven Industries.
The General Mills Electronics division developed theDSVAlvinsubmersible, which is notable for being used in investigating the wreck ofTitanicamong other deep-sea exploration missions.
Beginning in 1929, General Mills products contained box top coupons, known asBetty Crockercoupons, with varying point values, which were redeemable for discounts on a variety of housewares products featured in the widely distributed Betty Crocker catalog. The coupons and the catalog were discontinued by the company in 2006.
General Mills became the sponsor of the popular radio showThe Lone Rangerin 1941. The show was then brought to television, and, after 20 years, their sponsorship came to an end in 1961.
Beginning in 1959, General Mills sponsored theRocky and His Friendstelevision series, later known asThe Bullwinkle Show. Until 1968, Rocky and Bullwinkle were featured in a variety of advertisements for General Mills. General Mills was also a sponsor of the Saturday-morning cartoons from theTotal Televisionproductions studio, includingTennessee Tuxedo.The company also was a sponsor of theABCwesternseriesThe Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp, starringHugh O'Brian. The company, along with its subsidiaryThe Program Exchange, backedDiC Entertainmentin syndicating theDennis the Menaceanimated series based on thecomic strip of the same namecreated byHank Ketchamin 1986. From 1997 until May 31, 2004, General Mills sponsored and syndicated the first 82 episodes of the originalSailor MoonEnglish dub (the remaining 17 of 82 episodes premiered onCartoon Network's programming blockToonamiin 1998).
The first venture General Mills took into the toy industry was in 1965. The company boughtRainbow Crafts, which was the manufacturer ofPlay-Doh. General Mills's purchase of the company was significant because it brought production costs down and tripled the revenue.
In 1967, General Mills bought theKennertoy company.
General Mills came out with their"monster cereals"in the 1970s. The cereals are now produced and sold seasonally aroundHalloween.
In 1970, General Mills acquired a five-unit restaurant company calledRed Lobsterand expanded it nationwide. Soon, a division of General Mills titled General Mills Restaurants developed to take charge of the Red Lobster chain. In 1980, General Mills acquired the California-basedGood Earthhealth food restaurant chain.The company eventually converted the restaurants into other chain restaurants they were operating, such as Red Lobster.In 1982, General Mills Restaurants founded a new Italian-themed restaurant chain calledOlive Garden. Another themed restaurant,China Coast, was added before the entire group was spun off to General Mills shareholders in 1995 asDarden Restaurants.
During the same decade, General Mills ventured further, starting the General Mills Specialty Retail Group. They acquired two clothing and apparel companies,TalbotsandEddie Bauer. The acquisition was short-lived. Talbots was purchased by a Japanese company, then known asJUSCO, and theSpiegelcompany purchased Bauer. Spiegel later declared bankruptcy, yet Bauer still remains, albeit in a smaller presence in the United States today.
From 1976 to 1985, General Mills went to court as the parent company ofParker Brothers, which held the rights on the brand name and gaming idea of the board gameMonopoly, claiming that the so-calledAnti-Monopolygame of an economics professor infringed their trademark. The dispute extended up to theU.S. Supreme Court, which ruled against them, saying that while they have exclusive rights to the gameMonopoly, they cannot prevent others from using the word "monopoly" in the name of a game.
In 1985, General Mills's toy division was separated from its parent as Kenner Parker Toys, Inc. There were many potential acquirers of the business but it was floated on the stock exchange with General Mills's shareholders getting equivalent shares in Kenner Parker. This was more tax efficient for General Mills.
In 1990, a joint venture withNestlé S.A.calledCereal Partnerswas formedwhich markets cereals (including many existing General Mills cereal brands) outside the US and Canada under the Nestlé name.
In 2001, the company purchasedPillsbury(sansBurger King) fromDiageo, although it was officially described as a "merger".
Since 2004, General Mills has been producing more products targeted to the growing ranks of health-conscious consumers. The company has chosen to switch its entirebreakfast cerealline towhole grain. The company also started manufacturing their child-targeted cereals with less sugar.General Mills has reduced the level of sugar in all cereals advertised to children to 11 grams per serving.
In April 2011, General Mills announced that it will switch all 1 million eggs it uses each year to cage-free.
General Mills was ranked #181 on the 2012Fortune 500list of America's largest corporations,161 in 2015 and was the third-largest food consumer products company in the United States.During June 2012, the company's vice-president for diversity stated that General Mills opposes a Minnesota amendment banning gay marriage, stating that the company values "inclusion".The company received positive feedback for its stand which might attract people to its global workforce.
The company announced in September 2014 that it would acquire organic food producerAnnie's Inc.for a fee of around $820 million, as part of its strategy to expand in the US natural foods market.In October 2014, General Mills announced plans to cut 700 to 800 jobs, mostly in U.S., in corporate restructuring planned to be completed by the end of 2015.
In 2015, citing climate change, General Mills promised to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 28 percent over 10 years.In December 2016, the company announced it would be restructuring, splitting into four business groups based on global region, and cutting as many as 600 jobs.
In February 2018, the company entered into the pet products industry, paying $8 billion to buy Blue Buffalo Pet Products, Inc.As of 2018, the company ranked 182nd on theFortune 500list of the largest United States corporations by revenue.
Having launched its firstregenerative agriculturepilot program in March 2019, the company has plans to improvesoil healthon 1 million acres of farmland by 2030 and has formed a partnership with Regrow Agriculture, a software anddata analysiscompany that usessatellite imagery,weather data, and soil data to measurecarbon sequestrationinsoil.
In February 2020, General Mills was recognized byCDPas a global leader in corporate sustainability and received a place on the CDP "A List" for both climate change andwater security.
On May 15, 2021, General Mills announced that it was acquiringTyson Foods's pet treat business, including True Chews, Nudges and Top Chews, for $1.2 billion.The acquisition was completed on July 7, 2021.
In April 2022, there were increasing news reports and complaints that the company's Lucky Charms cereal was somehow making individuals ill, with the most common complaints being gastrointestinal in nature, such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. The episodes have not yet resulted in a company- or FDA-initiated recall; an FDA spokesperson said they were investigating approximately 100 reports. These reports came as norovirus was circulating in some areas of the U.S. It is relatively rare for cereals, as opposed to other foods, to be contaminated by microbes, because they must be baked, although it is possible if conditions are unsanitary.
On May 12, 2022, General Mills announced that it was acquiring TNT Crust, a supplier of frozen pizza crusts, from Peak Rock Capital.
On May 25, 2022, General Mills announced that it was selling itsHamburger Helperand Suddenly Salad businesses toEagle Family Foods Groupfor $610 million. The sale was completed on July 5, 2022.
On November 9, 2023, General Mills acquired a pet supplement business, Fera Pets, Inc.
On September 12, 2024, General Mills announced that it would sell its North American yogurt division toGroupe Lactalisand Sodiaal. Lacatlis would buy the US brands while Sodiaal would by the Canadian brands which would be completed by 2025.
General Mills's breakfast cereals include:
Some brands are marketed outside the US and Canada by theCereal Partnersjoint venture using theNestlébrand.
General Mills' past and current cereal collaborations include:
The company's grain-snack brands include:
The company's baking-goods brands include:
It also producesfruit snacks, includingFruit by the Foot,Fruit Gushers,Fruit Roll-Ups, and Fruit Shapes.
The company's meal products brands include:
It also producesorganic foods, viaCascadian Farm, which they took over when they bought Small Planet Foods, and Muir Glen. More recently, as of 2014, it has purchasedAnnie's Homegrown.
Other company brands include Annie's, Blue Buffalo, Frescarini, Latina,Tiki Pets,Totino's,Jeno's,Progresso,ColomboandLärabar. It also producesHäagen-Dazsice cream outside of the U.S. and Canada. General Mills acquired the meat-based brand Epic Provisions in 2016.
General Mills brands no longer manufactured include:
The company has been associated with social media campaigns and education of dieticians promoting the "anti-diet" movement.  This activity has been connected with helping to promote some of its own foods, which are high in sugar content.
In April 2014, the company announced that it had changed itslegal termson its website to introduce anarbitration clauserequiring all disputes with General Mills to be resolved insmall claims courtorarbitrationand not as a participant in aclass action.The change was made shortly after a judge's March 26, 2014, denial of a motion to dismiss a class action regarding the marketing of the company's Nature Valley brand products.Users would be deemed to accept the terms by interacting with General Mills on its website in various ways, such as downloading coupons, subscribing to newsletters, or participating inInternet forumshosted on the website.The New York Timesstated that the agreement could be interpreted to additionally construe purchasing General Mills products at a grocery store or liking the company's Facebook page as assent to the terms;General Mills disclaimed that interpretation, calling it a "mischaracterization".The change in terms resulted in a massive backlash of protests via consumer groups and social media, and General Mills reverted the terms back to the original content after only a few days.
On 12 February 2020, theUnited Nationspublished adatabaseof companies doing business related in theWest Bank, includingEast Jerusalem, as well as in the occupiedGolan Heights.General Mills was listed on the database on account of the activities of its subsidiary General Mills Israel inIsraeli settlementsin these occupied territories,which some have argued isillegal under international law.
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