Champions of Breakfast

The report examines the environmental impact of US grain production, specifically for breakfast cereals, and proposes that the four companies controlling 86% of the $8.5 billion US market can catalyze a shift toward regenerative agriculture. Through three scenarios based on Iowa State University research, the authors demonstrate that sourcing grains from sustainable rotations (including oats and cover crops) can significantly reduce soil erosion, nitrogen runoff, and nitrous oxide emissions. The document recommends a combination of corporate sourcing commitments and state/federal policy support to help farmers overcome the up-front costs of transitioning to these practices.

• The US breakfast cereal market is highly concentrated, with just four companies controlling 86 percent of the $8.5 billion market, providing these leaders with significant leverage to influence grain farming sustainability.
• Current US grain production is dominated by a lack of crop diversity, particularly corn and wheat, which contributes to soil degradation, vulnerability to pests, and a reliance on toxic pesticides and fertilizers.
• Degraded soils increase the risk of floods and droughts for farms and downstream communities, while current farming practices miss opportunities to sequester atmospheric carbon in the soil.
• Implementing healthy-soil practices, such as three- or four-crop rotations including oats and cover crops, can significantly reduce environmental damage; for example, such rotations can reduce soil erosion by up to 60 percent and nitrogen runoff by up to 39 percent.
• Analysis of three sourcing scenarios shows that even modest corporate commitments can yield substantial benefits. For instance, sourcing the amount of oats used in Honey Nut Cheerios (Scenario 2) could prevent up to 72,900 metric tons of soil loss and reduce nitrous oxide emissions by up to 23,637 metric tons of CO2e.
• A larger commitment to purchase 140,000 acres worth of oats (Scenario 3) could prompt the transition of up to 420,000 acres of cropland, reducing nitrogen runoff by 612 metric tons and phosphorus runoff by 136 metric tons.
• The report recommends that the USDA and Congress expand financial and technical support programs, such as the Conservation Stewardship Program and Environmental Quality Incentives Program, to help farmers manage the up-front costs of transitioning to sustainable practices.

APA

Union of Concerned Scientists (2019). Champions of Breakfast. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2019/07/champions-of-breakfast.pdf

Chicago

Union of Concerned Scientists. Champions of Breakfast. 2019. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2019/07/champions-of-breakfast.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Union of Concerned Scientists |title=Champions of Breakfast |date=July 2019 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2019/07/champions-of-breakfast.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{unionofconcernedscientists2019champions, author = {{Union of Concerned Scientists}}, title = {{Champions of Breakfast}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2019}, month = jul, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2019/07/champions-of-breakfast.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }