Dive Brief:
- Consumers looking for a less sugary yogurt option will soon find Yoplait Original's new recipe, which uses more than 25% less sugar, according to General Mills Inc.
- The new less sweet recipe also means a dip in calories from 170 to 150, and, because the recipe uses more milk, a one-gram increase in protein, from five grams to six grams in a six-ounce cup.
- In its previous recipe, Yoplait was among the sweetest yogurts out there, and as consumers began moving toward less sweet yogurt varieties, like Greek yogurt, Yoplait began to fall out of favor. Before changing this recipe, Yoplait answered with its own Greek yogurt, which helped it regain some percentage of the market.
Dive Insight:
This is one of several moves General Mills has made over the last few years to keep its Yoplait brand a contender in the yogurt industry. Its line of yogurts no longer contains high-fructose corn syrup, and General Mills said in a blog post, "In 2009, Yoplait stopped using milk from cows treated with the rBGH growth hormone." Unilever's Breyers ice cream line will be removing the growth hormone as well.