General Mills doubles down on pet food

General Mills, known for Cheerios, Trix and Yoplait, is hoping pet food will help it fight lagging cereal and snack sales, according to CNN.

The company said that it plans to double distribution of Blue Buffalo pet food items in the food, drug and mass market channel, which includes grocery, drug stores and big box retailers like Target, according to CNN. It also plans to make more of its products available in more stores.

The efforts will lead to double digit growth in Blue Buffalo sales for the year, the company said.

General Mills bought Blue Buffalo for $8 billion earlier this year. Jeff Harmening, CEO of General Mills, referred to the purchase as a "portfolio reshaping strategy" at the time. "We know that pets are family members," he said. "We want to continue to do better for all family members."

Blue Buffalo's sales fell by about 7 percent the three months ending in November compared to the same period last year. General Mills said the loss is relative and that Blue Buffalo sales surged by 25 percent in the fall of last year after products were sold in mass retailers for the first time. Blue Buffalo was an independent company at the time, according to CNN.

To read the full CNN article, click here.