General Mills, Inc.

Strategic execution · Merger acquisition and divestiture risks

Our success depends, in part, upon our ability to integrate acquired and existing operations. If we are unable to successfully integrate acquisitions, our financial results could suffer. Additional potential risks associated with acquisitions include additional debt leverage, the loss of key employees and customers of the acquired business, and the assumption of unknown liabilities.

Market position and competition · Industry consolidation and market concentration

There has been significant consolidation in the grocery industry, resulting in customers with increased purchasing power. In fiscal 2025, Walmart accounted for 22 percent of our consolidated net sales and 31 percent of net sales of our North America Retail segment.

Market position and competition · Competitive pressure and market share loss

The human and pet food categories in which we participate are very competitive. Our principal competitors in these categories are manufacturers, as well as retailers with their own branded and private label products. All of our principal competitors have substantial financial, marketing, and other resources.

Reputation and brand · Social media and digital reputation

The use of social and digital media by consumers, us, and third parties increases the speed and extent that information or misinformation and opinions can be shared. Negative posts or comments about us, our brands, or our products on social or digital media could seriously damage our brands and reputation.

Reputation and brand · Brand damage and negative publicity

Maintaining and continually enhancing the value of our many iconic brands is critical to the success of our business. Brand value could diminish significantly due to a number of factors, including consumer perception that we have acted in an irresponsible manner, adverse publicity about our products, or our failure to maintain the quality of our products.

Reputation and brand · Product recalls and public safety

We may need to recall some of our products if they become adulterated, misbranded, or mislabeled. A widespread product recall could result in significant losses due to the costs of a recall, the destruction of product inventory, and lost sales due to the unavailability of product for a period of time.

Economic and market conditions · Consumer spending and confidence

The willingness of consumers to purchase our products depends in part on local economic conditions. In periods of economic uncertainty, consumers may purchase more generic, private label, and other economy brands and may forego certain purchases altogether.

Geopolitical and trade · Trade policies tariffs and sanctions

Commodity prices may be affected by trade tariffs (including recent tariffs imposed or threatened to be imposed by the United States on China, Canada, Mexico, and other countries and any retaliatory actions taken by such countries).

Natural and catastrophic events · Climate change and environmental impact

If climate change has a negative effect on agricultural productivity, we may experience decreased availability and higher pricing for certain commodities that are necessary for our products. Increased frequency or severity of extreme weather could also impair our production capabilities, disrupt our supply chain, impact demand for our products, and increase our insurance and other operating costs.

Market and investment · Investment portfolio performance

We sponsor a number of defined benefit plans for employees in the United States, Canada, and various foreign locations. Changes in interest rates, mortality rates, health care costs, early retirement rates, investment returns, and the market value of plan assets can affect the funded status of our defined benefit plans and cause volatility in the net periodic benefit cost and future funding requirements of the plans.

Credit and liquidity · Access to capital and financing

We depend on stable, liquid and well-functioning capital and credit markets to fund our operations. Our financial performance, our credit ratings, interest rates, the stability of financial institutions with which we partner, and the liquidity of the overall global capital markets could affect our access to, and the availability, terms and conditions, and cost of capital.

International and currency · Foreign exchange and currency exposure

Our financial performance on a U.S. dollar denominated basis is subject to fluctuations in currency exchange rates. A strengthening in the U.S. dollar relative to other currencies in the countries in which we operate would negatively affect our reported results of operations and financial results due to currency translation losses and currency transaction losses.

Capital structure and performance · Debt management and refinancing

As of May 25, 2025, we had total debt and noncontrolling interests of $14.9 billion. Our level of indebtedness may limit our ability to obtain additional financing for working capital, capital expenditures, or general corporate purposes, and may limit our flexibility to adjust to changing business and market conditions.

Credit and liquidity · Debt service and covenant compliance

There are various financial covenants and other restrictions in our debt instruments and noncontrolling interests. If we fail to comply with any of these requirements, the related indebtedness, and other unrelated indebtedness, could become due and payable prior to its stated maturity.

Market and investment · Asset valuation and impairment

As of May 25, 2025, we had $22.4 billion of goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets. If current expectations for growth rates for sales and profits are not met, or other market factors and macroeconomic conditions were to change, then our reporting units could become significantly impaired.

Supply chain and procurement · Raw material availability and cost volatility

The principal raw materials that we use are commodities that experience price volatility caused by external conditions such as weather, climate change, product scarcity, limited sources of supply, commodity market fluctuations, currency fluctuations, trade tariffs, pandemics, war, and changes in governmental agricultural and energy policies and regulations.

Core operations · Operational disruption and business continuity

Damage or disruption to raw material supplies or our manufacturing or distribution capabilities due to weather, climate change, natural disaster, fire, terrorism, cyber-attack, pandemics, war, governmental restrictions or mandates, labor shortages, strikes, import/export restrictions, or other factors could impair our ability to manufacture or sell our products.

Supply chain and procurement · Supplier operation and dependance

Many of our product lines are manufactured at a single location or sourced from a single supplier. The failure of third parties on which we rely to meet their obligations to us, or significant disruptions in their ability to do so, may negatively impact our operations.

Technology infrastructure · Technology systems and infrastructure failure

Our information technology systems and infrastructure are critical to effectively manage our key business processes. Our information technology systems may be vulnerable to damage, interruption, or shutdown due to any number of causes such as catastrophic events, natural disasters, fires, power outages, systems failures, telecommunications failures, security breaches, computer viruses, hackers, employee error or malfeasance.

Industry regulation · Safety and environmental regulations

We are subject to various federal, state, local, and foreign environmental laws and regulations. We are currently party to a variety of environmental remediation obligations. Due to regulatory complexities, uncertainties inherent in litigation, and the risk of unidentified contaminants on current and former properties of ours, the potential exists for remediation, liability, indemnification, and compliance costs to differ from our estimates.