General Mills is bringing back two iconic advertising mascots to appear in ads. The Jolly Green Giant debuted in a TV commercial Monday to encourage kids to eat more vegetables. The cartoon-like Cheerios Kid from the 50s and 60s is making an appearance in online ads.

General Mills has been pitching gluten-free products to a niche market. The New York Times Magazine reports in the process the Golden Valley company has become heroes for people with a rare digestive disorder. General Mills has put gluten-free lables on more than 300 of its products and has reformulated others--like Chex cereals, to appeal to people with ciliac disease.

A limited number of Cascadian Farm Granola Bars may be linked to a larger recall of peanut products due to salmonella contamination. General Mills announced the recall is a precaution because peanut pieces may have been sourced from Sunland, Inc. The peanut manufacturer has expanded its recall to 240 products after 35 people from 19 states have fallen ill.

Discussion of company performance was overshadowed at General Mills' annual meeting by shareholder questions about the marriage amendment. General Mills is publicly opposing the Constitutional amendment that would ban same sex marriage. CEO Ken Powell called it a business issue and said the amendment is not good for employees or the state.

The Golden Valley-based food company says the job cuts are part of its "productivity and cost savings plan" designed to improve organizational effectiveness and focus on key growth strategies. A General Mills spokesperson told the Business Journal about half of the cuts will come largely from administrative and support positions in the Twin Cities.

Golden Valley-based General Mills will start shipping more than three dozen new yogurt products next month as it tries to revitalize its U.S. yogurt business. Some of the new items include a 100-calorie Yoplait Greek yogurt and Yoplait Fruplait.

Golden Valley-based General Mills is accused of incorrectly describing the ingredients of its fruit snacks as having 'real fruit.' The federal lawsuit is one of many recent suits accusing food companies of advertising products as being healthier than they are.

The Golden Valley-based company came out Thursday to voice its opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage in Minnesota. "We do not believe the proposed constitutional amendment is in the best interests of our employees or our state economy -- and as a Minnesota-based company we oppose it," General Mills said in a statement. The Pioneer Press notes General Mills and Little Canada-based St. Jude Medical are the only two major corporations in Minnesota to publicly oppose the marriage amendment.