Yoplait yogurts are central to General Mills’ strategy to meet what the company calls consumers’ “increasing appetite for snacks that offer added benefits like protein, fiber, whole grains or a full serving of a fruit or vegetable.” The Minneapolis-based dairy and food processor announced last week an aggressive lineup of new products set to bring more consumers to General Mills' leading brands.

More than 50 new items will debut from the company's U.S. retail business with dozens more rolling out in international markets during the second-half of the company's fiscal 2014, which ends in May.

The dairy product standouts from the lineup include new flavors of Yoplait Greek blended yogurt and Yoplait Light Dessert Mix-Ins.
With an emphasis on snack foods, some of the most notable new items include:

• Yoplait Yopa! Greek yogurt (France and Belgium) – Yopa! in France and Belgium represents the latest in a line of Greek yogurts that General Mills offers around the world. This strained yogurt includes fruit on the bottom in six flavors: Strawberry, Blueberry, Lemon, Mixed Fruit, Peach and Passion Fruit, and Plain.
• Yoplait Greek 100 – Taste plus protein all in 100 calories. New indulgent flavors of Yoplait Greek 100 include Apple Pie and Strawberry Cheesecake.
• Yoplait Light Dessert Mix-Ins – Yoplait Light Dessert Mix-Ins come with a serving of yogurt and a separate pack of toppings. Consumers can mix together flavors like Key Lime Pie with Graham Cracker Crumbles, Boston Cream Pie with Chocolate Cookie Crumbles, and Coconut Cream Pie with Graham Cracker Crumbles.
• Nature Valley Breakfast Biscuits – Available in Blueberry and Honey flavors, the new breakfast biscuits provide 26 grams of whole grain, 5 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber per serving.
• Fiber One Meal Bars – The Fiber One franchise enters the nutrition bar category with new Fiber One Meal Bars touting 10 grams of protein, 9 grams of fiber and fortified with 14 vitamins and minerals. Available in Chocolate Peanut Butter, Strawberry Greek Yogurt and Dark Chocolate Almond varieties.
• Nature Valley Nut Clusters (exclusive to convenience stores) – These bite-sized clusters of nuts, dried fruit and seeds pack in 8 grams of protein per serving. Nature Valley Nut Clusters come in two varieties: Roasted Nut and Seed, and Apple Cinnamon.
• Cascadian Farm Protein Bars – For consumers seeking alternative protein, these new bars are made with organic pea protein and are available in Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip and Honey Roasted Nut.
• Larabar uber bars – These sweet, salty and chewy bars add two new decadent flavors: Dark Chocolate Turtle and Dark Chocolate Peanut.

Snack foods on the rise
Consumers are seeking snack foods more than ever. General Mills continues to lead growth in the grain snacks category in the United States, adding almost 10 points of market share over the past five years. Through the first-half of fiscal 2014, strong new product innovation from Fiber One and Nature Valley has driven a gain of nearly four more share points and retail sales gains of 11%.

International Products to Launch
Outside of the United States, General Mills also will launch dozens of new products that will meet consumer demand for taste, health and convenience. A new Haagen-Dazs (Europe) flavor is part of this launch. The super-premium Haagen-Dazs ice cream brand introduces Secret Sensations Tiramisu flavor, reminiscent of the popular Italian dessert.

SOURCE: General Mills