October 1, 2004
Consumer groups are generally applauding a move by breakfast cereal giant General Mills, which says it will now use whole grain in all of its breakfast cereal products. The company said it took the action because of the growing awareness that whole grain in the diet helps to fight a variety of diseases.
"Eating more whole grain could have a significant impact on the overall health of Americans," said Dr. David Kessler, former Commissioner of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. "The science shows a strong connection between whole grain and a reduced risk for heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity, which are the biggest preventable killers in the United States."
In the past, most breakfast cereals, especially those marketed to children, were criticized as little more than candy. General Mills' action is designed to reverse that perception, with the company pointing out that the entire General Mills portfolio of Big G breakfast cereals will now be either a "good" or "excellent" source of whole grain. Long-time whole grain cereals such as Cheerios, Wheaties, Total and Wheat Chex were already rated "excellent" sources of whole grain and were not changed.
Obviously, the company was concerned about how changes in composition would affect the tastes of its cereals, but executives say they are satisfied they will feel no adverse inpact in sales. The company conducted extensive taste tests across the country with more than 9,000 people. It says the new whole grain cereals were scored just as well as or even better than the previous cereal recipes.
"There seems to be a lot of confusion as to which foods really deliver whole grain," said Susan J. Crockett, Ph.D., R.D., who is the senior director of the Bell Institute of Health and Nutrition, the nutrition research arm of General Mills.
To help consumers easily identify which ready-to-eat cereals are made with whole grain, General Mills also unveiled new packaging "Whole Grain" labeling to be on every cereal box. Consumers can expect to begin seeing this new packaging starting within the next few weeks and continuing on into the New Year, depending on the brand.
General Mills says its move will increase by more than 1.5 billion the number of whole grain servings per year for Americans, without additional calories. "Putting all of our cereals together, General Mills will provide Americans with 26 million servings of whole grain per day," Crockett said. "This will help close the gap in whole grain consumption in the United States."
General Mills says that currently, only three percent of the total calories consumed annually in the United States come from whole grain. Adults consume only one serving a day on average-and children consume even less-though the recommendation from public health officials is at least three servings of whole grain foods per day.
