Product Radar: New Cereals From Big G

General Mills Chairman and CEO Steve Sanger mentioned in a conference call that the company has a number of new cereal products, including fruit-flavored Cheerios, that will be introduced in the first quarter according to the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.). Another round of new products also are planned for later in the fiscal year.

The current line-up of Big G cereals doesn't include anything very exciting, and while the idea of fruit flavored Cheerios is hardly a breakfast innovation, I'm hoping for some more radical introductions. The mention of the expanded Cheerio line is clearly a nod to investors, who like to see new products launched within the safety of existing brands.

The history of General Mills is a confusing mess of mergers and acquisitions. Jona and Claire turned me on to the wonderful history of breakfast cereal in a number of Wikipedia articles (Post and Kelloggs) and I recommend digging in.