General Mills cost-cutting plans include 700 to 800 layoffs

General Mills Inc. plans to eliminate 700 to 800 jobs as part of its cost-cutting plan to fight declining sales.

The Golden Valley-based food company revealed the layoffs late Tuesday in a filing with federal securities regulators. General Mills says the job cuts will primarily be in the U.S. The company employs about 5,000 people in the Twin Cities.

The Star Tribune (http://strib.mn/1ppYqS4 ) says the job cuts are expected to be completed by spring and will save $125 million to $150 million annually.

To try to boost sales, the company has been tweaking its recipes and getting into new food categories as consumers' tastes change. It gave Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal a stronger cinnamon taste, removed aspartame sugar substitute from Yoplait Light and released a new line of Cheerios with added protein.

___

Information from: Star Tribune, http://www.startribune.com