General Mills

Reasons to avoid

1. Eight Black workers at General Mills' Covington, Georgia plant filed a federal class action lawsuit in 2024 alleging that a group called the "Good Ole Boys" — described as a fraternal organization of white supremacists embedded in plant management and HR — systematically denied Black employees promotions, issued them disproportionate discipline, and created a racially hostile work environment the suit claims has existed since the plant opened in 1988.cnn.com2024-06-05
2. Independent lab tests found glyphosate — the active ingredient in Roundup weedkiller — in Nature Valley granola bars and Cheerios. General Mills settled a lawsuit by agreeing to remove "Made with 100% Natural Whole Grain Oats" from Nature Valley packaging. The company had been using glyphosate on oat crops as a harvest desiccant: a practice with no food-safety benefit, done solely to increase yield.bakeryandsnacks.com2018-08-28
3. A peer-reviewed 2024 study in the Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology found chlormequat — a pesticide linked to reduced fertility and fetal harm in animals — in 92% of non-organic oat-based foods tested, including Cheerios. The chemical is not approved for use on U.S. food crops, but General Mills said only that its products "adhere to all regulatory requirements." Organic oat products showed dramatically lower contamination.fooddive.com2024-02-21
4. The Texas Attorney General opened an investigation into General Mills in 2025 for marketing cereals like Trix and Lucky Charms as "healthy" while they contained petroleum-based artificial dyes (Red 40, Yellow 5) linked to hyperactivity disorders, endocrine disruption, and cancer in children. General Mills had pledged to remove artificial dyes in 2015, quietly re-added them two years later, and only committed to removing them again under threat of legal action.texasattorneygeneral.gov2025-04-01
5. In December 2025, San Francisco's city attorney filed a landmark lawsuit against General Mills and nine other food companies, comparing their marketing tactics to Big Tobacco. The suit alleged the companies deliberately used cartoon mascots and partnerships with toy makers and children's media to hook kids — particularly in low-income communities of color — on ultra-processed products that drive obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.abcnews.go.com2025-12-02