Over 23,000 Consumers Call on General Mills and Major Food Companies to Reject GMO Wheat

Friends of the Earth warns that new GMO wheat could lead to the contamination of breads, cereals, and pastas with toxic herbicide glufosinate

WASHINGTON — Over 23,000 consumers have signed a petition organized by Friends of the Earth U.S., Beyond Pesticides, and allied organizations calling on General Mills and other leading food companies to publicly commit to excluding a recently-approved, controversial strain of herbicide-tolerant GMO wheat from their products.

This comes just days after General Mills unveiled a new commitment to expand regenerative farming practices across 40,000 Midwest wheat acres. Friends of the Earth urges that commitments to invest in regenerative wheat should include a clear pledge not to source the new GMO wheat, since its use could increase threats to soil health, pollinators, and aquatic life. 

The GMO wheat, called “HB4”, is genetically engineered to withstand glufosinate ammonium, a highly hazardous herbicide banned in the European Union because of concerns about reproductive toxicity; glufosinate is linked to miscarriage, stillbirth, and birth defects in animal studies. 

Because this GMO wheat would be sprayed directly with glufosinate, its commercialization could increase use of the herbicide and lead to higher residues in staple foods such as breads, pastas, and cereals. As more consumers seek foods produced with fewer synthetic pesticides, companies have both a business opportunity and a responsibility to keep HB4 wheat out of their supply chains.

“The thousands of consumers who signed this petition aren’t just asking companies to reject GMO wheat — they’re asking brands to uphold higher standards for food safety, environmental stewardship, and transparency,” said Dana Perls, senior program manager at Friends of the Earth. “General Mills and other food companies can be leaders by rejecting a crop designed to tolerate increased use of a hazardous herbicide that poses threats to our health and the environment and by investing in organic agriculture, which prohibits toxic pesticides like glufosinate.”

HB4 wheat, developed by Bioceres Crop Solutions, was recently approved for cultivation in the United States. Although federally approved, HB4 wheat is not currently being grown commercially in the United States, giving food companies an opportunity to keep it out of their supply chains before commercialization begins. A report released by Friends of the Earth earlier this year shows that introducing herbicide-tolerant GMO wheat is incompatible with General Mills’ stated aims of improving soil health, water quality, carbon sequestration, and farmer livelihoods. 

“With genetically engineered crops dependent on chemical-intensive agriculture, it is essential that the future of farming incorporate regenerative organic practices that provide protection for life-supporting ecosystems, farm families, and farmworkers,” said Jay Feldman, executive director of Beyond Pesticides.

“At a time when consumers are increasingly concerned about pesticide exposure and its impacts on human health, maintaining public trust is essential for leading food companies,” said Sarah Starman, senior campaigner at Friends of the Earth. “General Mills has built its reputation on household brands that families trust. Publicly rejecting herbicide-tolerant GMO wheat would demonstrate that the company is responding to growing consumer concerns about chemical exposure in the food supply.” 

Friends of the Earth’s report on HB4 wheat warns that its use would pose unnecessary risks to public health, farmers, and the environment while offering no independently verified benefits. The report concludes that introducing HB4 wheat would increase dependence on a hazardous herbicide, threaten export markets for U.S. wheat growers, and undermine progress toward more sustainable agriculture.

Among the report’s findings:

• HB4 wheat poses significant economic risks for U.S. wheat farmers by threatening export markets that reject GMO wheat and increasing the risk of contamination of non-GMO wheat.
• GMO HB4 wheat reinforces a chemical-intensive agriculture model which has increased herbicide use and fueled herbicide-resistant weeds.
• No independent evidence supports manufacturer claims that HB4 wheat provides meaningful drought tolerance or improved yields.
• Organic farming and conventional plant breeding offer proven approaches to improving climate resilience without increasing dependence on hazardous pesticides.

Contact: Kendra Klein, [email protected], 202-836-3732