General Mills to remove artificial ingredients from products

US-based General Mills has committed to remove artificial flavours and colours from all its cereals.

The company has already removed artificial ingredients from 60% of its cereals, including Cinnamon Toast Crunch and original Cheerios.

General Mills has taken up this initiative to address the changing preferences of consumers who are increasingly choosing to opt for food without any artificial ingredients.

As per plans, the company aims to remove such flavours from 90% of its product portfolio by the end of 2016.

General Mills cereal division president Jim Murphy said: "At General Mills cereals, we have been upgrading the nutrition and ingredients in our cereals for years to meet people’s needs and desires.

"We’ve continued to listen to consumers who want to see more recognisable and familiar ingredients on labels and challenged ourselves to remove barriers that prevent adults and children from enjoying our cereals."

Some of the company’s popular products, like Trix, will now only use ingredients such as fruit and vegetable juices, and spice extracts including turmeric and annatto for lending the required colours to the product.

The company will continue using peanut butter and cocoa, along with natural vanilla flavour in its Reese’s Puffs.

General Mills cereal developer Kate Gallager said: "Cereals that contain marshmallows, like Lucky Charms, may take longer, but we are committed to finding a way to keep the magically delicious taste as we work to take out the artificial flavors and colours from artificial sources."