General Mills Names Jeffrey Harmening Chief Operating Officer
June 23 2016 - 10:39AM
Dow Jones News
By Brittney Laryea
General Mills Inc. on Thursday named 22-year company veteran
Jeffrey Harmening as its new chief operating officer as it
struggles to restore growth in its U.S. retail business.
The company said Mr. Harmening, 49 years old, will take
responsibility for all of the company's operations effective July 1
and will continue to report to Chief Executive Ken Powell.
"The timing is right to bring together overall operations under
one leader," Mr. Powell said.
The 150-year-old food company said that would include its U.S.
retail business, which has been struggling recently as consumer
buying habits shift toward portable, higher-protein, meals for
breakfast such as Greek yogurt and breakfast sandwiches instead of
processed oats and grains.
Mr. Harmening has served as executive vice president and chief
operating officer of the U.S. retail segment for the past two
years. He was previously the chief executive of Cereal Partners
Worldwide SA, a joint venture with Nestlé Inc., based in
Switzerland. Before that, Harmening served as president of General
Mills's cereal operating unit and in various U.S. marketing
roles.
The company said it would name Mr. Harmening's successor at a
later date.
General Mills also changed its labels in March to indicate on
its foods whether they contain genetically modified organisms,
ahead of a Vermont law that will mandate it as of July.
Earlier this month, General Mills said it would recall more than
10 million pounds of flour as a precaution, after the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention said it was investigating an E.coli
outbreak that likely began with flour made at a General Mills plant
in Kansas City. General Mills said it was recalling several lots of
its Gold Medal, Wondra and Signature Kitchen brands sold in major
supermarkets like Albertsons Cos., Safeway Inc. and Jewel-Osco.
General Mills stock rose 0.1% to $66.49 early Thursday. The
shares have gained 9% over the past three months.
Write to Brittney Laryea at Brittney.Laryea@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 23, 2016 10:24 ET (14:24 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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