General Mills Foundation & Philanthropy

Our philanthropic work is an extension of the company's purpose and ties closely to our core business and food systems knowledge. We work in innovative ways with partners locally and around the world to harness our collective impact in key areas, while engaging employees through volunteerism.

Videos from this campaign

Content from this campaign

Supply Chain & the Circular Economy

General Mills Supports Women, One Vanilla Bean at a Time
Before you take your next bite of our sweet, creamy Häagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream, we invite you to think about who grows the vanilla for this delicious treat, and how you are supporting that farmer’s livelihood.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

This Latina Has Built A Career On Paying It Forward And Championing Food Security At General Mills
Mission motivated Mary Jane Melendez to the same degree, if in different ways, than it did her family.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

General Mills: The Power of Food for Good
General Mills Serves the World by Making Food People Love. But that’s not the only way we serve. We serve by harnessing the power of food for good. Learn more in this video.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Partnering for Purpose: A Q&A With General Mills Foundation
Everyone has a role to play in ending global hunger, and increasingly, the private sector is stepping up to do its part. General Mills, in particular, has been a trailblazer in partnering with nonprofits such as World Food Programme (WFP) for social good, and is a critical supporter of WFP school meals initiatives around the world.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Truckers, General Mills, Feeding America Look to Rescue Good Food From a Bad End
The U.S. wastes edible food at an alarming rate. Each year, about 72 billion pounds of otherwise consumable foodstuffs never make it onto store shelves, according to estimates from Feeding America, a large hunger-relief group. Annually, that amounts to roughly 40 percent of all food in the US, the group said. Those figures don’t include the volumes of food that spoil either at rest or in transit. Nor does it cover the mountains of scraps thrown away every day by hotels, restaurants, consumers and the like.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

A Decade of Impact in Africa
This is a true story about 1,500 African food companies in nine African countries, and 1,500 volunteers from six food companies that worked together to improve food security across Africa.

Awards, Ratings & Rankings

General Mills Receives Corporate Citizenship Award
General Mills was awarded the prestigious 2018 Citizen’s Award by the Corporate Citizenship Center of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation in the category of Best Community Improvement Program.

For 19 years, The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Awards has honored businesses through this awards program to illustrate how every day businesses serve as a powerful force for good around the world. General Mills was selected from a rigorous selection process with the entry, “Catalyzing Sustainable Communities Through Food Rescue and Recovery” among 300 entries, many of them Fortune 500 companies.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Feeding America Expands Pilot Nationally to Help Truckers Rescue Food
Today, on World Food Day, Feeding America announced the national expansion of a pilot program to rescue food, in partnership with manufacturers and their carriers on the road. Each year, 40 percent of food in the United States goes to waste. This program, known as MealConnect Logistics, has already facilitated the donation of more than 580,000 pounds of food to the Feeding America network of food banks in the pilot phase.

After partnering together for nearly four decades addressing hunger, Feeding America and General Mills joined forces last fall to get more meals to families in need. By recognizing there was food to be rescued within the delivery chain, the two organizations developed a smart solution to fight both food waste and hunger.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Innovation to Address Hunger: Less Waste, Better Use of Supply
Tuesday is World Food Day, yet 1 in 11 households in Minnesota struggle with hunger. The issue is as pervasive as it is quiet, and many of our neighbors endure the challenge of putting enough food on the table. At the same time, 40 percent of food in the U.S. is wasted each year. Over the past year, General Mills and Feeding America partnered to create an innovative solution to connect surplus food in the delivery system with families in need.

Philanthropy & Cause Initiatives

Rescuing One Billion Pounds of Food
One billion of anything is a lot.

One billion pounds of perfectly good food given to hungry people instead of landfills is life changing for those who face hunger. And according to Feeding America, that’s one in eight people in America.

With wasted food in landfills being one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas going into the atmosphere, every pound of food we can use to feed hungry people – rather than send to a landfill – really helps the environment.

More from General Mills

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    Our philanthropic work is an extension of the company's purpose and ties closely to our core business and food systems knowledge. We work in...

  2. 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...

  3. Protecting Pollinators
    We serve the world by making food people love. Food that depends on healthy pollinators. Since 2011, General Mills and our brands have invested $6...

  4. 2017 Global Responsibility Report
    For 150 years, General Mills has been making food people love while investing to make the world around us better. We believe that being successful in...

  5. General Mills | Sustainability
    Our sustainability mission is to treat the world with care. Our focus areas include: Climate change, Water stewardship, Sustainable sourcing...

  6. You Grow, Girl!
    This series is comprised of contributed pieces from female farmers around the globe – from the northern reaches of Canada, to the heartland of the U.S...

  7. General Mills | Global Responsibility Report Archive
    At General Mills, we know that food plays a central role in people’s lives and has a profound impact on the environment and communities worldwide. We...

  8. Addressing Climate Change from Farm to Fork
    General Mills announced on August 31 a commitment to reduce absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 28 percent across its full value chain – from farm to...

  9. Responsible Sourcing
    We are committed to sustainably sourcing 100 percent of our 10 priority ingredients by 2020, representing more than 40 percent of our annual raw...

  10. General Mills: 2018 Global Responsibility Report
    For 150 years, General Mills has been making food people love and making the world around us better. In this, our 48th year of reporting back to our...