Monday, June 16, 2025

General Mills CEO Harmening: ‘We don’t sell Cheerios in the morning and then think about sustainability in the afternoon’

• In today’s CEO Daily: Diane Brady talks to General Mills CEO Jeff Harmening.
• The big story: Israel-Iran conflict enters fourth day.
• The markets: Oil is up and so are stocks.
• Analyst notes from UBS on the conflict in the Middle East, Goldman Sachs on the Fed, Convera on international interest rates, and JPMorgan on the effect of tariffs.
• Plus: All the news and watercooler chat from Fortune.

Good morning. When General Mills CEO Jeff Harmening thinks about sustainability, he looks at the millions of acres of farmland where his company sources wheat, oat, dairy, and other crops. “If we don’t do something different, in about 2050, 90% of topsoil will be in danger,” Harmening told me at a dinner that Fortune held in partnership with Deloitte for sustainability leaders in Minneapolis. The good news is that General Mills is more than 60% of the way to achieving its goal of advancing regenerative agriculture—farming practices that regenerate degraded soil—on a million acres of land by 2030. “We’re, frankly, ahead of where we thought we’d be.”

That’s cause for hope in otherwise challenging times for leaders who care about sustainability. At a global level, we’re on track to achieve only 17% of the UN’s sustainable development goals by 2030. Nationally, we’ve seen a rollback with the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement, dismantling of key agencies, and the EPA decision to repeal limits on greenhouse gas emissions.

But the private sector is stepping up, with many of the leaders at our dinner giving examples of how sustainability initiatives not only protect but grow their businesses. As one attendee said: “Regulations move the laggards, not the leaders.” (The table conversation was under Chatham House rules.)

For Harmening, the key is focus: He reduced the number of company-wide initiatives from 70 to 10 when he became CEO, doubling down on three that are core to the business: regenerative agriculture, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and recycling. “This is part of our strategy for how we win,” he said. “We don’t sell Cheerios in the morning and then think about sustainability in the afternoon.”

More news below

Contact CEO Daily via Diane Brady at diane.brady@fortune.com

Top news

Israel-Iran conflict enters fourth day

President Trump urged the two sides to stop: “Iran and Israel should make a deal, and will make a deal, just like I got India and Pakistan to make...we will have PEACE, soon, between Israel and Iran! Many calls and meetings now taking place," he said on Truth Social. BBC live coverage here.

Trump orders mass deportations from Democratic cities

President Trump, using Truth Social, ordered ICE to “to do all in their power to achieve the very important goal of delivering the single largest Mass Deportation Program in History,” specifically targeting immigrants in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, which he described as “the core of the Democrat Power Center.”

What the Fortune 500 is saying about immigration crackdowns

Consumer-facing Fortune 500 companies from Walmart to Keurig Dr. Pepper have released statements describing how a nationwide crackdown on immigration could affect their business. Read what some of them have said here.

Minnesota shooting suspect captured

Vance Boelter is suspected of killing Minnesota’s former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark. The WSJ has a lengthy profile of him here. The NYT reports he had a list of 70 other targets.

Nvidia will omit China from financial outlook

Nvidia has decided to omit the Chinese market from its earnings forecasts as the U.S. government continues to impose trade restrictions with the country, CEO Jensen Huang told CNN last week. Analyst Dan Ives told Fortune that the decision signifies that Huang is “10% politician, 90% CEO.”

The markets

• The VIX fear index rose 14% today on news that the conflict between Israel and Iran won’t likely end soon. U.S. crude oil rose 1.23% to $73.88 a barrel, after rising more than 7% last week. The stock markets are taking it in stride, however. S&P 500 futures were up 0.51% this morning despite turmoil in the oil markets. The S&P 500 closed down 1.13% on Friday, at 5,976. The Fed is expected to discuss the effects of the conflict during meetings this week. Bitcoin is sitting above $107K. Japan’s Nikkei 225 was up 1.26% today. India’s Nifty 50 rose 0.9%. China’s SSE Composite rose 0.35%. Stoxx Europe 600 was up 0.35% in early trading.

From the analysts

• Goldman Sachs on the chances of the Fed cutting rates: “Since the last FOMC meeting, trade tensions have diminished somewhat, inflation has been low, and the hard data have shown only limited signs of softening. At its June meeting, the FOMC will likely reiterate that it plans to remain on hold until it has further clarity and downplay its longer-term projections as highly contingent on a still very uncertain economic and policy outlook,” per Jan Hatzius and team.
• Convera on international central bank rates: “This week is shaping up to be a pivotal one for global markets, with six G10 central banks on deck, which will set the tone for markets. The US Federal Reserve (Fed) and Bank of England (BoE) are expected to hold rates steady despite markets recalibrating Fed cut expectations for at least two before the year end. The Swiss National Bank may cut by 50 basis points to counter franc appreciation, while Riksbank could reduce rates by 25 bps. Norway and Japan are likely to stay put,” per Kevin Ford.
• UBS on the Israel-Iran conflict: “The ongoing exchange of missile strikes between Iran and Israel this weekend has not had a major impact on financial markets. … Further market moves would be justified only if there were expectations of even more disruption to energy supplies or shipping lanes,” per Paul Donovan.
• JPMorgan on the effect of tariffs: “Front-loading was not likely a boost for 1H25 US growth as concentrated increases in spending on imported autos, tech, and pharma were likely offset by softer spending on domestic goods and services. It was, however, a tangible positive elsewhere, boosting exports and global factory output gains,” per Bruce Kasman et al.