The GOAT Farm

Independent lab analysis has revealed that the following General Mills cereals have tested positive for the presence of chlormequat, with levels of the chemical ranging from 40 to more than 100 parts per billion:

Cheerios
Honey Nut Cheerios
Frosted Cheerios
Oat Crunch Oats N’ Honey Cheerios

When chlormequat is applied to growing oat and grain crops, the chemical stops them from bending over, thus improving the harvesting process, the case relays. If ingested, chlormequat can “reduce fertility and harm [a] developing fetus,” even at doses lower than those allowed by regulatory agencies, the lawsuit states. Further, the pesticide has been shown to “delay puberty and impair the reproductive functions in mammals,” the filing says.

Neither the Cheerios packaging nor product labels list chlormequat as an ingredient in the cereal, and consumers are not warned about the potential inclusion of the pesticide in the products.