General Mills: Environmental Responsibility

By setting goals that push the company to do more, we demonstrate leadership in establishing aggressive goals within the food industry. 

For example, because we set goals: 

  • General Mills burns oat hulls left over from the milling process to reduce one of our plant's carbon footprints by about 21 percent. 
  • We have an irrigation process that uses 50 percent less water than conventional furrow irrigation, and also reduces electricity and pesticide use. 

Our fact sheets contain these and other interesting details. 

Videos from this campaign

Content from this campaign

Energy

General Mills Breaks Ground on Second Wind Project, Maverick Creek, to Offset 100% of Domestic Power
Once it is operational in October 2020, Maverick Creek and our first wind farm, Cactus Flats will offset 100% of the electricity used annually at our owned U.S. facilities.

Responsible Production & Consumption

INFOGRAPHIC | General Mills Triple Bottom Line Operating Unit

Responsible Production & Consumption

Annie’s Cereal Package Uses Recycled Plastic, but It’s the Consumer Messaging That Wins for Innovation
Annie’s started looking at the market for recycled materials, and learned a major source of recycled HDPE plastic came from old milk jugs. Then the idea almost formed itself: Annie’s saw an opportunity to close a loop in consumers’ minds, and turn milk jugs into the packaging for cereal that people pour milk over in the morning.

Energy

General Mills Meets U.S. Department of Energy “Better Plants Challenge” Goal Four Years Ahead of Schedule
In 2012, General Mills set a 10-year goal to improve energy efficiency in the company’s 26 largest U.S.-based plants by 20 percent (from FY12-FY22). Today, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced that General Mills achieved its goal four years ahead of plan, with a total efficiency improvement of 20.4 percent since fiscal year 2012.

Energy

The Business Case for Clean Power
General Mills began milling grain with water power from the Mississippi River 150 years ago. Now, the Fortune 500 company is using wind to power operations and cut its carbon footprint.

Energy

General Mills Buys Wind Energy And Consumer Goodwill
Following a barrage of announcements celebrating advances in environmental stewardship from food producers in honor of Earth Day, General Mills just announced that they have signed a 15 year purchase agreement with Roaring Fork Wind, LLC based in Central Texas.

Energy

General Mills Signs Its Largest Wind Power Agreement
General Mills, Inc. has signed a virtual 15-year power purchase agreement for 200 megawatts of the Maverick Creek wind project of Roaring Fork Wind, L.L.C., a joint venture between Renewable Energy Systems (RES) and Steelhead Americas.

Energy

Minnesota's General Mills and Hormel Buy Wind Power to Offset Energy Used to Make Food
General Mills signed a 15-year purchase agreement with Roaring Fork Wind, LLC in Texas. When coupled with its 2017 wind power agreement, the project will offset all of the electricity used at Golden Valley-based food maker’s owned U.S. facilities for the next decade and a half. It’s the company’s second and largest wind-power purchase agreement.

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

General Mills to Match 100 Percent of Its Annual U.S. Electricity Use With New Wind Power Agreement
General Mills has taken one of the biggest steps thus far toward its climate goal by signing a virtual 15-year power purchase agreement with Roaring Fork Wind, LLC, a joint venture partnership between RES (Renewable Energy Systems) and Steelhead Americas, for 200 megawatts (MW) of its Maverick Creek wind project.

Environment

Cascadian Farm Works to Advance Climate-Beneficial Foods With Limited-Edition, Small-Batch Honey Toasted Kernza® Cereal
Cascadian FarmTM, a pioneer in the organic food movement, is working to advance climate-beneficial foods with the launch of its small-batch, limited-edition Honey Toasted Kernza® cereal.

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