Better Health for All
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General Mills had 45% of its global product volume categorized as “Nutrition-Forward Foods” in fiscal 2024.
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The company has actively improved the nutrition of its U.S. retail sales volume by 81% from 2005 to 2018, including a 16% reduction in sugar in kid cereals since 2007
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and the removal of trans fats from over 250 U.S. retail products since 2008.
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However, in 2024, Consumer Reports found high levels of phthalates, chemicals linked to health issues, in several General Mills products.
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For safety, General Mills' company-owned production facilities are 100% Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) certified.
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However, there was one voluntary product recall globally in fiscal 2024
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and two in fiscal 2023.
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The company demonstrates strong risk transparency, having pioneered food allergen labeling in the 1990s,
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voluntarily included sesame as a labeled allergen, and supported legislation like the FASTER Act.
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It provides comprehensive product information through platforms like askgeneralmills.com and smartlabel.org.
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In terms of health externalities, General Mills reduced its Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 51% compared to its 2020 baseline
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and has engaged over 500,000 acres in regenerative agriculture programs by 2023.
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For health equity, the company contributed $112.5 million to charitable causes in fiscal 2023, representing 0.56% of its net sales.
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In 2023, 84% of its food security grantees focused on reducing racial disparities.
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During the COVID-19 pandemic, General Mills supported efforts to keep children and families from hunger and ensured WIC consumers had access to food.
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The company provides comprehensive mental health services to employees and their families through Spring Health, with 28% enrollment and 58% reporting improved depression symptoms within 14 months.
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General Mills commits to complying with data protection regulations like GDPR and CCPA.
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Fair Money & Economic Opportunity
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General Mills is a food manufacturing company and does not operate as a financial institution. Consequently, the company does not offer lending or deposit services to consumers, nor does it provide consumer credit products. It does not generate or manage customer finance data, nor is it regulated as a lender. Therefore, KPIs related to financial services, such as underserved client share, pricing fairness, exploitative fee exposure, financial inclusion initiatives (in a lending context), customer financial data accessibility, fair lending compliance, wealth building outcomes (from financial products), customer debt burden ratio, geographic inclusion (for financial service access points), and financial product simplicity, are not applicable to its core business. While General Mills engages in charitable giving, the percentage of pre-tax profit reinvested in community finance is not provided. Although the company offers financial literacy programs, the evidence does not provide the required 'percentage of customers' reached or specific 'outcomes' to align with the rubric's quantitative tiers, leading to its omission.
Fair Pay & Worker Respect
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General Mills reported a CEO-to-median employee pay ratio of 228-1 for the fiscal year ended May 31, 2024, with the CEO's total compensation at $13,461,006
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and median employee pay at $70,425
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. The company states its pay systems and practices are generally fair and equitable among all employees, with pay ratios within +/- 2% of 100% without regard to gender, race, or ethnicity
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. Approximately 37% of U.S. production employees are covered by collective bargaining agreements
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. Employee engagement is high, with 90% of employees stating General Mills is a great place to work
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. Voluntary employee turnover globally was 10.2% during fiscal 2023
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Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing
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Over 50% of the company’s annual raw material purchases, covering its top 10 priority ingredients, were sustainably sourced by 2020.
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Owned manufacturing locations, co-packers, and high-risk suppliers are audited at minimum every three years.
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For traceability, 95% of palm oil volume was traceable to the extraction mill in 2024.
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, with 90% traceable to the plantation.
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Additionally, 88% of cocoa was traceable from farm to first point of purchase in 2024.
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, and 99.9% of virgin fiber packaging sources are traceable to their country of origin.
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Honest & Fair Business
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General Mills incurred $18,065 in regulatory fines for emission violations between 2019 and 2023
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, specifically for failing to have a biomass boiler's emission levels approved and exceeding permitted levels
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. The company maintains a comprehensive whistleblower policy, including a 24/7 multilingual Ethics Line hosted by an independent service
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, which allows for anonymous reporting
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and reinforces an anti-retaliation commitment through an interactive tutorial
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. General Mills also has a robust anti-corruption policy that prohibits bribes, kickbacks, and facilitation payments
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,
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, with specific gift limits of $100 USD per item and $250 USD annually
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,
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. Its anti-corruption program includes online and in-person employee training, auditing of controls, and a screening program for third-party suppliers to assess corruption and sanctions risk
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. Allegations of misconduct are promptly investigated and shared with the Audit Committee
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Kind to Animals
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As of 2021, 61% of global egg purchases were cage-free or free-range, with a commitment to reach 100% by 2025.
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The company's animal welfare policy is guided by the 'Five Freedoms' principles and does not condone animal testing beyond what is legally required.
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General Mills advocates for higher standards for broiler chickens, supports polled breeding to eliminate dehorning in dairy cattle, and aims to remove gestation crates from its U.S. pork supply.
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Regenerative agriculture initiatives have been launched on dairy farms to enhance animal welfare, and the company plans to improve broiler chicken welfare by 2024.
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No War, No Weapons
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General Mills derived approximately 1.06% of its fiscal 2021 revenue from food product contracts with the Department of Defense.
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The company also has ongoing sales in Russia, a sanctioned country, representing less than 1% of its total sales, despite having stopped advertising and capital investment there.
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In 2020, the United Nations identified General Mills as operating in illegal settlements in occupied territories, from which the company later divested.
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The company is a signatory to the UN Global Compact
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and conducts responsible sourcing audits. Out of 550 supplier sites audited in 41 countries, 60 had significant incidents
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, with 13% of these remaining open.
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This indicates an 89.1% compliance rate with ethical standards, suggesting uneven implementation of human rights principles. The board's Public Responsibility Committee oversees political activity
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but does not have oversight over defense-related business activities.
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Planet-Friendly Business
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General Mills' 2030 climate goals are approved by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and aligned with 1.5°C guidance.
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The company surpassed its 2030 Scope 1 and 2 SBTi goals in 2022
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and is updating its targets to incorporate Forest, Land and Agriculture Guidance (FLAG).
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The company sourced 99% renewable electricity for its global operations through fiscal 2024.
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In fiscal 2023, General Mills achieved a 95% waste diversion rate globally, with 76% of total production solid waste recycled and 19% processed for energy recovery. For carton and corrugated fiber packaging, 61% of the material used is recycled.
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General Mills is committed to no deforestation in its palm, cocoa, and fiber supply chains by 2025, with 99% of its total volume considered low-risk for deforestation as of fiscal 2023.
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One incident related to water quality was reported in fiscal 2024.
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The company's climate strategy is informed by TCFD recommendations and includes consideration of a 2°C or lower climate scenario.
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General Mills conducted its first climate risk assessment in 2020
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and is working to develop a more robust assessment in 2024 and 2025, considering multiple scenarios.
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Approximately 1% of water withdrawals are from water-stressed areas as of fiscal 2024.
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General Mills is currently focused on addressing value chain emissions and will revisit high-quality offsets beyond its short-term targets.
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Respect for Cultures & Communities
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General Mills has established over 20 formal partnerships with various organizations, including CARE, Feeding America, Earthworm Foundation, and the Duke Lemur Center, to support initiatives such as regenerative agriculture, land rights, and community development.
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However, the company has faced at least one cultural appropriation incident involving Epic Provisions, with a potential second incident related to Thunderbird Energetica.
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Safe & Smart Tech
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General Mills states it has not experienced a material cybersecurity breach.
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The company maintains a strong security program, evidenced by periodic adversarial testing, penetration testing, red team exercises, and a documented, well-tested cybersecurity incident response plan.
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An annual assessment of maturity against the NIST Cybersecurity Framework is conducted with an independent firm.
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There are no documented incidents of unauthorized data use, supported by AI-enabled governance frameworks that automatically monitor data quality, privacy compliance, and access controls, and a reported data accuracy rate of about 97%.
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General Mills is committed to complying with regulations including GDPR, CCPA, COPPA, and lobbying regulations.
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Users have comprehensive control over their personal data, including rights to review, update, delete, and correct information, unsubscribe from marketing, opt-out of cookies via a preference center (supporting Global Privacy Control signals), and manage targeted advertising and sensitive data processing through a 'Your Privacy Choices' page.
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Zero Waste & Sustainable Products
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General Mills has incurred multiple environmental violations, including at least seven environmental violations, one water pollution violation, and two air pollution violations between 2019 and 2025, with associated fines.
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A specific air pollution violation from 2019-2023 involved biomass boiler emissions 262% above permitted levels for particulate matter.
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Despite these issues, the company demonstrates efforts in waste management and sustainable products. In fiscal 2024, 93% of its total production solid waste globally was diverted from landfill (88% recycled, 5% energy recovery).
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In fiscal 2023, 93% of General Mills’ packaging was recyclable or reusable by weight.
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The majority (61%) of carton and corrugated fiber packaging sourced contains recycled material, and Annie's cereal liners use at least 35% post-consumer recycled content.
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General Mills has implemented multiple waste reduction initiatives, including being a strategic partner and funder of MealConnect, which has recovered over six billion pounds of food since 2017.
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As of fiscal 2024, 26 production facilities (65% of the global total) met the company's zero waste-to-landfill criteria.
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The company has set ambitious waste reduction targets, aiming for zero waste to landfill at all owned facilities by 2025
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and a 50% reduction in food waste in operations by 2030 from a 2020 baseline.
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Furthermore, General Mills invests in customer waste education, providing How2Recycle labels on 86% of its U.S. products
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and piloting a dynamic Recycle Check label for localized recycling instructions.
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