PODCAST: Expo West 2016

Natural Products Expo West used to be a pretty small affair. That’s not the case anymore. Especially for General Mills.

The world’s largest natural, organic and healthy products event experienced another record-setting year last weekend, playing host to more than 77,000 attendees and more than 3,000 exhibiting companies.

There also were more than 600 first-time exhibitors at the show inside the Anaheim, California, Convention Center. (In Expo West’s first year, in 1981, there were just 3,000 people in attendance).

This year, General Mills had arguably our highest profile ever. Yet another example of how we’re reshaping our portfolio to meet changing consumer preferences.

I was at the show, and talked with a variety of food entrepreneurs, as well as employees and leaders with our natural and organic brands.

For our “A Taste of General Mills” podcast this month, I share a few of my interviews from Expo West.

You’ll learn:

-How General Mills is prioritizing natural and organic growth

-Why food industry consultant Robyn O’Brien thinks large companies like General Mills should help guide the natural and organic movement

-How our 301 INC venture capital arm interacts with food startups and entrepreneurs

-What’s new on the shelf from Annie’s, from president John Foraker

-What it’s like to exhibit at Expo West, from the perspective of Good Culture co-founder Jesse Merrill.

It’s easy to listen to our show when you’re on the go. Just listen on any podcast app on your mobile device (search for A Taste of General Mills) or through iTunes or right here on our blog, below.

Listen (24min)

SHOW NOTES – Episode 7: March 15, 2016

Link: Good Culture

Link: Natural Products Expo West

Link: Annie’s

Link: 301 INC

Link “General Mills to double organic acreage sourcing to meet growing demand for natural and organic foods”

Link: “Consumers come first: General Mills at CAGNY 2016”

We publish a new episode of our podcast every month. Search “podcast” in the box at the top of of this page for previous shows.

If you have an idea for a future podcast, we’d love to hear it. Please let us know in the comments below or via email at contact.blog@genmills.com.

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Bridget Christenson is a manager in Global Communications at General Mills, based in Minneapolis. She oversees initiatives for business and financial communications. She began her career at General Mills in 2005. More posts by this author