Cheerios: Soon to be GMO-free.
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Amid rising pressure to remove or label genetically modified foods, General Mills is changing the way it makes Cheerios cereal.
The original Cheerios will soon be made without any genetically modified organisms, according to General Mills spokesperson Mike Siemienas. The company has been working to make the change for nearly a year, and started production of the GMO-free Cheerios within the past few weeks. Consumers will notice a label on the side panel of the cereal box acknowledging the change "soon," Siemienas said.
To make GMO-free Cheerios, the company changed the sourcing of two ingredients: sugar and corn starch. The iconic breakfast cereal will no longer get sweetness from genetically modified sugar beets. Instead, the sugar will come from non-GMO sugar cane. In addition, the corn starch used to make the cereal won't come from genetically modified corn.
Siemienas said his company made the change in direct response to requests from "our fans." A frequently asked questions site explains the decision.
"We value our Cheerios fans and we listened to their thoughts and suggestions," Siemienas said.
However, there is an organized anti-GMO campaign that is taking credit for the change. The campaign has criticized General Mills for producing non-GMO Cheerios in Europe while continuing to use genetically modified ingredients in its U.S. cereals. It has accused the company of "perpetuating consumer deception" by spending $1.1 million to oppose a ballot measure in California that would have required labeling of genetically modified foods. And it encouraged consumers to pile on the pressure for General Mills to change its ways. One of the campaign's chief complaints about genetically modified crops is that they allow farmers worldwide to increase their use of pesticides that can harm farmworkers and contaminate soil, air and water.
So, does the change to GMO-free Cheerios mean General Mills is going to change its position on labeling genetically modified foods? Not quite. The company says it opposes state-by-state labeling laws, but it supports "a national solution for labeling non-GM ingredients."
Only the original Cheerios are going to be GMO-free – not any of the other flavors such as Honey Nut Cheerios. Those cereals rely on too many ingredients that could come from genetically modified foods, Siemienas said.
"For our other cereals, the widespread use of GM seed in crops such as corn, soy, or beet sugar would make reliably moving to non-GM ingredients difficult, if not impossible," the company explains on its website. It goes on to say: "Almost half of the cropland in the U.S. is used to grow genetically modified crops, and 70 to 80 percent of the foods in the average grocery store likely contain GMOs."
I wonder if this will affect the way General Mills foods are categorized in the GMO-free food app I tested out last year.
-- Cassandra Profita