General Mills Unveils 2015 Summer Product Showcase

General Mills has unveiled its line-up of new products, which will debut this summer. Leading this collection is a host of new products to align with growing consumer interest in wellness, including new Yoplait Plenti, Nature Valley Toasted Oats Muesli and Annie’s organic soups. “General Mills has been growing for more than a century, constantly innovating and investing to meet changing consumer needs. As we enter fiscal 2016, we are keenly aware of our consumers changing food preferences. This presents a tremendous opportunity to create growth for General Mills,” says Ken Powell, General Mills chairman and chief executive officer. “We remain deeply committed to following our consumers and adapting our portfolio to their tastes and interests.” Around the world consumers are focused on wellness and have new interests in products made with simple ingredients, foods free from gluten, natural and organic foods, foods that deliver more fiber, more protein and more whole grain, and foods free from artificial ingredients.  General Mills is responding to these evolving consumer preferences with:

The company has also announced significant moves to update the recipes for existing products in the U.S. including reducing sugar in Yoplait Original by 25%. General Mills has also made significant changes in cereal. In February, General Mills said it would make the most popular flavors of Cheerios gluten-free, thanks to the company’s newly developed technology that separates its oats, which are naturally gluten-free, from other gluten-containing grains that find their way into the oat supply. General Mills also plans to remove artificial flavors and colors from artificial sources in Big G cereals, replacing these ingredients with fruit and vegetable juices and spice extracts. Seventy-five percent of the Big G portfolio will meet this claim by January with the remainder by the end of calendar year 2017. While consumers are increasingly interested in wellness, they are also seeking contemporary solutions to help save time in the kitchen. “Many millennials enjoy cooking and are interested bringing ethnic, international flavors to meal time. They cook from scratch less often than previous generations and look to convenient short cuts that not only satisfy their desire to cook, but also allow them to put dinner on the table in 20 to 30 minutes,” says Jeanine Bassett, vice president of Global Consumer Insights at General Mills. General Mills, which has a long history of convenient meal helpers, is introducing new, convenient products that allow consumers to customize meal time. Most notable, this includes:

Even people following a wellness lifestyle can find a little room for an indulgent treat.  General Mills is introducing a new range of sweet treats from the ultra-indulgent to the permissible:

General Mills is also tapping into some of the hottest movie equities with products featuring Minions, Star Wars and Disney’s Frozen, letting consumers of all ages bring the magic of the movies into their lives to make breakfast and snacking fun. New to shelves will be Limited Edition Star Wars and Minions cereals, in addition to Yoplait Go-Gurt and kid yogurts featuring characters from Disney’s Frozen.