General Mills Joins Unprecedented Coalition to Help Reduce Obesity

Company`s nationally recognized strategies frame commitment
MINNEAPOLIS--(Business Wire)--
Reinforcing General Mills` on-going commitment to helping Americans achieve a
healthy weight through energy balance, the company joined retailers,
non-government organizations and peer food and beverage manufacturers today to
launch the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation (HWCF).

"We believe that companies like ours can make a difference, and we want to be
part of the solution," said Ken Powell, General Mills Chairman and CEO. "General
Mills` focused health and wellness strategy addresses the most important
consumer health concerns: weight management, heart health, and living a
healthier, more active lifestyle. Since 2005, we have improved the health and
nutrition attributes of products representing 45 percent of our U.S. Retail
business, and we are confident that we can continue to play a helpful role in
addressing this issue by providing lower calorie, higher nutrient products to
parents and their children, while continuing to support efforts to reinforce the
importance of physical activity."

The HWCF is a national, multi-year effort to try to help reduce obesity -
especially childhood obesity - by 2015. The HWCF will promote ways to help
people achieve a healthy weight through energy balance - balancing calories
consumed as part of a healthy diet with calories expended through physical
activity. The initiative will focus its efforts on three critical areas where
people spend much of their time - the marketplace, the workplace and schools.

Connecting with Consumers

General Mills` health and wellness strategy addresses weight management, heart
health and living a healthier, more active lifestyle - the most important health
concerns of American consumers. The company strives to provide products that
offer great taste and convenience, while also delivering the nutritional
benefits consumers are seeking.

Many General Mills products offer specific health benefits as part of a balanced
and healthy lifestyle. The company has reduced the number of calories in
products, added calcium, reduced fat, added vitamins, reduced sugar and sodium
and increased fiber.

For example, studies show that just one in 10 U.S. consumers eat enough fiber.
General Mills has responded with innovations in this important area, and now
offers more than 30 fiber-added products - everything from yogurt to pancakes -
under its category-leading Fiber One brand.

In the important area of whole grain nutrition, General Mills` Big G cereal
division alone delivers almost 35 million servings of whole grain per day -
helping ensure that 1 in 10 Americans get at least one serving of whole grain
every day by eating a bowl of any Big G cereal, including category-leading
cereals such as Cheerios, Chex and Kix.

Other examples of the company`s focus on health and nutrition include more
convenient ways to eat Green Giant vegetables, reduced-sodium Progresso soups
and low-fat Yoplait yogurts.

Empowering employees

Recognized as a "Best Employer for Healthy Lifestyles" by the National Business
Group on Health, General Mills also focuses on employee wellness by empowering
employees to make healthy choices.

Beginning with the company`s TriHealthalon program, designed especially for the
company`s sales employees almost 25 years ago, programs are tailored to meet the
unique needs of different employee groups. In the TriHealthalon program, for
example, sales employees from different regions compete to meet fitness and
wellness goals. "Total You," a program developed for employees at the corporate
headquarters, was launched in 2000, and the company`s "Health Number" program
was created for Supply Chain employees in 2004.

Since extended to all three groups, General Mills` "Health Number" program asks
employees questions about exercise, diet and lifestyle, and tracks health
measurements over time to calculate an employee`s "health number," while
supporting programs to improve and enhance an overall healthy lifestyle. The
health improvements of employees as a result of these programs have been
significant.

Commitment to Community

General Mills also partners to help children and families live healthy, active
lives. For seven years, General Mills has supported the Champions for Healthy
Kids initiative, donating more than $18 million to nonprofit organizations that
support and educate young people on the importance of maintaining balanced diet
and staying fit and active. This initiative, sponsored by the General Mills
Foundation, operates in partnership with the American Dietetic Association
Foundation and the President`s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports.

Through the General Mills Foundation`s Healthy Communities program, the efforts
have also included partnerships with Mayor Adrian Fenty`s Commission on Food &
Nutrition and the United Way of the National Capital Area to promote fitness and
better nutrition among school-aged children in the Washington D.C., community.
With an investment of $500,000, public and charter elementary schools in the
community will be able to provide more robust physical education programs and
nutrition learning for thousands of local students.

"We are very pleased to stand with our peers in launching this initiative,"
added Powell. "This is important issue for our nation to address, and we believe
the new Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation can help."

About General Mills

One of the world's leading food companies, General Mills operates in more than
100 countries and markets more than 100 consumer brands, including Cheerios,
Häagen-Dazs, Nature Valley, Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Green Giant, Old El Paso,
Progresso, Cascadian Farm, Muir Glen, and more. Headquartered in Minneapolis,
Minnesota, U.S.A., General Mills had fiscal 2009 global net sales of US$15.9
billion, including the company`s $1.2 billion proportionate share of joint
venture net sales.

General Mills
Heidi Geller, 763-764-6364

Copyright Business Wire 2009