Cereal has long been considered an ideal food for fortification due to its convenience, the ability to have a uniform distribution of nutrients and its wide consumption – from the very young to very old. According the market research company NPD Group and its 2019 National Eating Trends, cereal is the most-eaten breakfast food at home, with cereal in more than 90% of consumer homes. Recently, cereal companies announced that they will be decreasing the amounts of many of the nutrients they have been adding to cereals for many years. But is this change is a healthful one? Should you be concerned?

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Why Fortify Cereal?

Fortification is the addition of one or more essential nutrients to a food. Historically, it was done because it was done to prevent or correct a deficiency of one or more nutrients. For example, cereals add numerous B vitamins, such as thiamin and niacin, which were identified as a deficiency in the U.S. in the early 1940s. The lack of enough folic acid is another nutrient deficiency that leads to neural tube disorder in the fetus if the mother doesn't take in enough before and during pregnancy. The incidence of neural tube disorder was up and folic acid fortification into cereal was a smart solution.

Fortification of cereals has been happening for over 80 years. For example, the Kellogg Company has been voluntarily adding vitamins and minerals to breakfast cereals since it first fortified Pep cereal with B vitamins and vitamin D in 1938. According to registered dietitian Sarah Ludmer, senior director of U.S. Wellbeing and Regulatory at Kellogg Company, “Scientific evidence from around the world demonstrates that voluntary fortification of foods can play an important role in helping to increase the intake of shortfall micronutrients among both children and adults.”

The Impact of the Nutrition Label Updates on Cereals

The new food labeling laws now have food companies increasing or decreasing “serving size” on the label to reflect the portion people actually eat. The Reference Amount Customarily Consumed (RACC) for cereal went up, which means that people are pouring more cereal in their bowl than they used to. As part of the nutrition label update, cereal’s RACC increased from 30 grams to 40 grams for a lighter-weight cereal, like Cheerios. For heavier cereals, like Raisin Nut Bran, the RACC increased from 55 grams to 60 grams.

Because the portions are now larger to reflect actual eating habits of consumers, the nutrition information per serving also changes. This could appear to consumers as if the serving of their favorite cereal has more sugar, however, it's not due to a recipe change in the cereal, but rather the change in serving size.

Reassessing Fortified Nutrients

The change in portions also means that the vitamin and mineral profiles may also increase. In addition, according to Ludmer, “The changes to the daily recommended values for several vitamins and minerals was one factor in our decision to re-evaluate our fortification profiles and ensure our foods reflect the updated nutrient recommendations.”

General Mills has done the same thing. According to registered dietitian Amy Cohn, Big G Cereal nutrition and external affairs manager, “Recent changes to nutrition labels allowed us the opportunity to re-assess the fortification levels in our cereals and modernize the amounts based on what Americans actually need.” (Big G cereals are part of the General Mills brand.) “Thus, through this work, we not only discovered which vitamins and minerals we needed to maintain or increase, but we also learned which vitamins and minerals we didn’t need to fortify as much in (because Americans are doing really well),” she explains.

An evidence-based review on the dietary intake of Americans shows that most are meeting vitamin B needs. This is reflected in the daily value decrease for many of the B-vitamins with the nutrition label reform. That is why Big G and other cereal companies have reduced the levels of B-vitamins that they add to cereals. Another factor that played a role in determining which nutrients to change fortification levels was the nutrients in the foods consumed alongside cereal, like milk or fruit.

While some vitamin fortification levels decreased, others increased. Vitamin D, for example, is an under-consumed nutrient in the U.S. population, as identified in the 2015-2020 dietary guidelines for Americans. “Although it may not appear we increased vitamin D by looking at the label, we actually did," Cohn says. The daily value of vitamin D doubled with the new label changes because most Americans aren't getting enough. General Mills now fortifies vitamin D at 10% the daily value, which is double the amount fortified prior to the label change.

Consumer Concerns

The changes in food labels can be confusing for customers, especially those who are used to their current product and food label. According to Cohn, “These changes are very new to many of our cereals, and our focus is to proactively explain the label changes and the reason behind them.” Although cereal companies like General Mills reduced some vitamin and minerals, they still fortify at either a good source – defined as 10% or above of the daily value – or an excellent source – defined as 20% or above of the daily value.

The Bottom Line

Cereal companies are on top of U.S. eating trends and are updating nutrient fortification amounts based on the nutritional needs of the population. Cereal continues to deliver whole grains, fiber, vitamins and minerals all in one bowl. In fact, breakfast cereal is the top source of thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, iron, zinc, vitamin B12, vitamin E and vitamin A at breakfast.

One thing many folks forget is that about 40 million people struggle with hunger in the U.S. Although you can find many nutritious foods with high price tags for buzz-worthy ingredients and limited retail availability, they're not accessible by everyone. Overall, cereal is nutritious, affordable and available to a majority of the population. It's one food you want to keep on store shelves and in your pantry at home.