Editing Cheerios (section)

== History ==
Cheerios were introduced on May 1, 1941, as "Cheerioats". The name was shortened to "Cheerios" in 1945, after a competing cereal manufacturer, [[Quaker Oats]], claimed to hold the rights to use the term "oats".<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QpLtCQAAQBAJ&dq=cheerioats+cheerios+1945&pg=PT1282|title=The Advertising Age Encyclopedia of Advertising|year=2015|first=John|last=McDonough|publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781135949136 }}</ref>

Cheerios' production was based upon the extrusion process invented for [[Kix (cereal)|Kix]] in 1937. The oat flour process starts in [[Minneapolis]] before being shipped to factories in [[Iowa]], [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], and [[Buffalo, New York]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://abcnews.go.com/Business/cheerios-celebrates-75-years-turning-oats-os/story?id=38375357 | title=Cheerios Celebrates 75 Years of Turning Oats to O's | website=[[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] }}</ref>

On 1976, 35 years after the cereal was first introduced, "Cinnamon Nut Cheerios" became the first alternate variety of Cheerios to be sold in stores. Nearly 3 years later, in 1979, "[[Honey Nut Cheerios]]" was introduced.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/27/business/media/27adnewsletter1.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0 |title=7 Agencies Will Tell You This Cereal Is No. 1 |first=Stuart|last=Elliott |date=June 27, 2011 |work=The New York}}</ref> General Mills sold approximately 1.8 million cases of Honey Nut Cheerios in its first year.

Since their introduction, Cheerios have become a popular [[baby food]]. Generally first fed to children aged 9–12 months, Cheerios serve to help infants transition to eating solid food, as well as develop fine motor skills.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cheerios.com/first-finger-foods/|website=Cheerios|title=First Finger Foods|accessdate=6 September 2021}}</ref>{{Promotional source|date=December 2023}}