Most Americans expect their breakfast cereal to be filled with more than just wheat flakes. Even a quick look up and down the cereal aisle at a local supermarket reveals just how far cereal manufacturers have gone in the last few decades in their attempts to develop health-conscious cereal brands and provide greater selection. Ingredient supplies for cereal manufacturers come from providers of whole grains, spices, oil seeds and dried fruits and nuts.

Most of the manufacturers and blenders of the necessary grains are in the United States. Understandably, almost all of the wholesalers supplying spices, fruits and nuts are foreign concerns. Contact the tried and true breakfast cereal ingredients suppliers as you search for high quality products to put into your unique recipe:

1. Reach out for the largest suppliers of whole grains with years of experience in providing custom blends to cereal manufacturing companies.

2. Expect to deal with foreign importers for the spices used in many cereal brands.

3. Order premium quality nuts and dried fruits that produce the highly popular granola cereal.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Deal with leading grain suppliers for the wheat, oats and barley necessary to cereal brands

Grain suppliers provide the main ingredient that cereal companies depend on. They are also branching out into the organic whole grains market to provide greater customer selection. Most offer custom blending of ingredients and will package the grains according to the manufacturer's specifications.

I recommend: US Foods started in Nebraska in the 1920's as a manufacturer of whole grains and other products that cereal manufacturers depend on. The company now supplies to cereal manufacturing companies all over the United States and abroad. Grain Millers is a leading manufacturer of oats, barley, rye and wheat flakes.

Contact suppliers of the most popular spices that many brands of cereal depend on

Cereal manufacturers purchase spices and oil seeds from leading global exporters. The predominant spices are cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Sesame oil seed has also become a sought-after product that more breakfast cereal manufacturers are adding to their list of must-have ingredients.

I recommend: Unique Organics supplies its spices and oil seeds to wholesale cereal manufacturers around the world. Wholesale Bulk Spice is a world leader in the manufacture and sale of spices for many cereal brands.

Locate the specialty fruits and nuts that go into making granola cereal

Dried fruits and nuts suppliers must offer an extensive line of products at competitive prices. Most of these products are imports from India, the Middle East and Africa.

I recommend: J.F. Braun & Sons has been supply dried fruits, nuts and seeds to breakfast cereal manufacturers for more than 50 years. Contact Flagship Fruit & Nut for specialty dried fruits from Turkey, Greece, France and South Africa.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Ordering supplies for cereal manufacturers is a full-time job that some leading cereal companies have outsourced to food ingredients specialists.

Breakfast food manufacturers produce a large variety of cereal brands for people of all ages. Whether you are looking for something sweet or something natural to start your day, there are brands of cereal that will supply you with exactly what you want.

Many people start their days off by eating a bowl of cereal. It is one of the most commonly eaten breakfast foods in households all over the world. The following information shows the popularity of cereal:

1. Most people in the U.S. eat approximately 160 bowls of cereal per year.

2. Studies show that the United States is not the top consumer of breakfast cereal. It is ranked as fourth in the world.

3. In 2002, the Kellogg Company was listed as the top seller out of all breakfast cereal suppliers worldwide, and its revenue for the year was listed as $8.3 billion.

4. More than 2.7 billion boxes of cereal are sold every year in the U.S.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Learn about nutritional value and ingredients from cereal companies

Most large cereal manufacturing companies have websites that list the various brands of cereals they produce. When you want to find out about the ingredients and how nutritional any brand of cereal is, visit these sites to determine which brands of cereal are right for you and your family. Click on the icon for any type of cereal to review the nutritional details. All cereal manufacturers are also required to list these facts on every box of breakfast cereal.

I recommend: Find information on the many popular brands made by well-known cereal manufacturers General Mills Inc., Kellogg NA Co., Kraft Foods and Quaker.

Purchase products made by lesser-known cereal manufacturers

There are many smaller cereal manufacturing companies that produce their own cereals. Their websites also provide nutritional facts and a list of ingredients. Get some specialty cereals and compare them to the national brands.

I recommend: Try Kashi Company brand cereal for products made from whole grain without any artificial ingredients. McKee Foods Corporation produces a healthy granola cereal. Back to Nature manufactures cereals that are made from all natural ingredients. Concord Enterprises Inc. offers a variety of wholesale cereal brands to consumers.

Buy products from breakfast cereal suppliers that offer organic choices

These days many people are choosing to purchase organic foods. They are popular because the ingredients are all grown naturally and without the usual chemicals and pesticides that are sprayed on many types of food products. Organic foods appeal to people who are interested in leading healthy lifestyles and individuals who are concerned about the environmental effects of pesticides. Try an organic cereal to see if it is right for you.

I recommend: The Hain Celestial Group and Peace Cereal produce cereals that are certified organic.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Save money by purchasing products made by a generic cereal manufacturer.
• •  Purchase individual sized boxes of cereal that you can take with you to work or on trips.

Cereal manufacturers have enjoyed spectacular success in America's food industry. Millions of Americans consume breakfast cereal every day and have done so for more than 100 years. Like any other product, however, brands of cereal are subject to consumer purchasing whims and events out of a manufacturer's control. That is why cereal manufacturers and food industry professionals pay such close attention to cereal manufacturers’ news and trends.

Staying informed of the latest events affecting sales of breakfast cereal requires you to access trade magazines, blogs with noteworthy discussions about commercial cereal brands and websites of the major cereal manufacturers. With such a broad approach, you'll know you're ahead of the game when it comes to events driving the cereal manufacturing industry:

1. Monitor the consumer trends impacting the sales reported by cereal companies.

2. Learn about new product development at the websites that breakfast cereal manufacturers maintain.

3. Discover what consumers are saying in blog discussions about popular cereal brands.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Find out how the latest consumer trends affect commercial cereal suppliers

Search for news stories reporting on factors that influence consumers' purchasing choices. For example, health trends, new products and economic conditions can sway consumer preferences in a particular direction.

I recommend: Decision News Media publishes Nutraingredients.com, an online news magazine reporting on consumer trends affecting the ingredients food manufacturers around the world use. Also leading the research into consumer trends is Consumer Reports, the online magazine published by the highly respected nonprofit organization, which provides consumers with essential information they need to make good choices about the foods they buy. The magazine helps cereal manufacturers focus on current health trends among consumers.

Get the latest news about cereal brands on websites of leading cereal manufacturers

The major cereal manufacturers maintain websites which include links to their media relations departments. These links allow you to access timely news accounts of events affecting that company and other cereal manufacturers in general. Find out whether the company foresees expansion, acquisition or plans to launch new products, such as wholesale cereal brands.

I recommend: The Kellogg Company website provides recent press releases that discuss the company's enterprise goals and product innovation programs. The General Mills website also presents news releases reporting consumer reaction to their products, studies showing the health benefits of granola cereal and highlights from meetings of the company's shareholders.

Join blog discussions for cereal manufacturers news and trends that consumers are discussing

Blog discussion groups can share information affecting cereal manufacturing companies, such as how certain brands of cereal may be more nutritious than others or whether cereal is a good breakfast choice for weight-conscious individuals.

I recommend: Bloggers at Diets in Review discuss the latest news about cereal manufacturers and their products. Join the discussion on products from leading cereal suppliers at A Food Year.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Cereal manufacturers place the highest priority on the health benefits of their products. That's why they invest millions into finding the most wholesome ingredients and improving the nutritional content of their products.

Breakfast has long been proclaimed the most important meal of the day by doctors and nutritionists. But being an expert on cereal or cereal manufacturing requires a little more knowledge than just opening the box and pouring milk. Cereal manufacturers key terms can help you understand some of the industry's jargon and supply you with a deeper understanding to commonly used terms. Specialized processes and industry specific machinery are easy to understand if you use this quick glossary as a reference.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Ready-to-eat cereal, RTE

Ready-to-eat cereal, commonly referred to as RTE cereal, is any manufactured cereal product that does not require any further preparation to serve.

I recommend: Intota gives a precise definition of RTE cereal. For further description of ready-to-eat cereal visit General Mills or Processing of Food.

Tempering

Tempering the cereal refers to the heating and cooling process used to obtain crispness.

I recommend: WordNet gives a basic definition of tempering. Food Product Design shows where tempering fits into the cereal manufacturing process.

Corkscrew extruder

The corkscrew extruder is a machine used to make cereal that mixes, turns and cooks the grain cereal mixture.

I recommend: The extruder in the fourth step of eNotes.com's "The Manufacturing Process, Preparing the Grain." Hoover's explains how the corkscrew extruder works and fits into the cereal making process.

Gun-puffing

Gun-puffing is the step in the puffed cereal making process where sudden heat is added to the dough pellets in a pressure cooker type machine, causing the dough to puff up.

I recommend: Information about gun-puffing can be found at Hypertextbook. In the section Making Puffed Cereal on How Products Are Made, you can find an in-depth discussion of the process.

Twin screw extruder

The twin screw extruder has a similar function as the corkscrew extruder mentioned above. However, this machine is fitted with two rotating screws. These two screws mix and turn the dough make the process faster.

I recommend: Capri InfoSoft describes the twin screw extruder, its purpose and function. For an explanation, along with image of the machine, check out Clextral.

Oats

Oats are one of the grains processed and used in cereal making.

I recommend: Visit the George Mateljan Foundation's page on oats for even more details.