Kellogg's switches to rice flour and corn flour in Rice Krispies and Coco Pops

Kellogg's has altered the recipes for its Rice Krispies and Coco Pops cereals, replacing whole rice grains with rice flour and adding corn flour to Coco Pops. The new formulations also contain wheat gluten, which requires the products to be labeled as containing wheat and to highlight the allergen on the packaging.

"We have updated the Rice Krispies and Coco Pops recipes, which are now made using corn flour and rice flour. This recent change helps us maintain consistent quality at a time when changing weather conditions are affecting the quality and availability of some of the rice and grains used in our cereals," a Kellogg's spokeswoman said.

The company said the cereals remain low in fat, salt and sugar, contain no artificial colours, flavours or sweeteners, and keep the same levels of fibre, vitamin D and iron. Previously, the products carried a "may contain gluten" warning because they were produced in facilities that also handled gluten-containing cereals; the new recipes now list wheat gluten as an explicit ingredient.

Industry reports indicate that sales of Rice Krispies have been falling, with both value and volume down, according to a forthcoming Top Products Survey.