General Mills Puts Twist on Classic Cereals

Big Picture

The cereal industry is experiencing a shift towards products that serve dual purposes as both snacks and nutritious meals, driven by changing consumer habits and health trends.

What to Watch

• Consumer reception of new cereal variations
• Impact on General Mills' market share
• Trends in cereal as a snack category
• Development of healthier cereal options

Full article

General Mills announced that it is launching new twists on some big fan-favorite cereals in the coming year. Variations of Trix, Lucky Charms, Reese’s Puffs, Cheerios, and Nature Valley will go after a couple important trends in the sector—cereal as a snack and healthier options.

The cereal sector saw considerable growth through the COVID-19 lockdown, with more people eating breakfast at home. In fact, General Mills was one company that hired additional workers to meet the growing demand. At the same time, the pandemic put consumers’ focus squarely on healthier eating, putting pressure on food and beverage companies to come up with healthier options.

General MillsIn this launch of six new cereal varieties, General Mills seems to be going after a couple key categories—cereal as snacks and healthier options. Variations on Trix and Lucky Charms add some new flavors and fun, while Cheerios and Nature Valley provide some new options in whole grains and added proteins.

The brands set to release new items include Trix, Cheerios, Lucky Charms, Reese’s Puffs, and Nature Valley.

• Trix with Marshmallows adds bunny-shaped marshmallows to the original fruit-flavored sweetened corn puffs.
• Lucky Charms Berry Swirl includes new marshmallow charms in the shapes and taste of strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries mixed in with the classic sweetened corn cereal.
• Reese’s Puffs Peanut Butter Lovers has the chocolate and peanut butter flavors of the original cereal but with extra peanut butter.
• Honey Nut Cheerios Minis is the same as the company’s classic Honey Nut Cheerios but in miniature form. This version follows the popularity of previous Minis for brands such as Reese’s Puffs, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Trix.
• General MillsMaple Cinnamon Cheerios Hearty Nut Medley blends maple- and cinnamon-flavored Cheerios mixed with cereal flakes, sliced almonds, and pumpkin seeds. The cereal contains 33g of whole grains per serving.
• Nature Valley French Vanilla Protein Granola is a new flavor in the Nature Valley Protein lineup. The French vanilla flavor contains 13g of protein per serving.

According to a recent report from Datassential, snacks are where it’s at for consumers these days—and two-thirds of consumers say that anything can be a snack. General Mills has certainly found popularity with the miniature versions it launched a year ago, and these, along with marshmallow-packed offerings, seem to fit well into the snack category.

General Mills
 

Meanwhile, many food trends are tending increasingly toward the healthy. In North America and Europe, where cereal is a more established market, nutritional content is a major consideration when developing new products, according to a market report from Grand View Research. The protein-rich Nature Valley addition and the Cheerios Hearty Nut Medley appear poised for the more health-conscious consumers.