Breakfast giant Post is making a bet on cereal designed to put you to sleep
- The company behind Grape Nuts has a new cereal designed to be eaten before bed.
- Post's "Sweet Dreams" is designed to stoke your body's melatonin production.
One of the world's largest cereal companies is trying to get you to eat cereal right before you go to bed, not just when you wake up.
Post Consumer Brands will start selling "Sweet Dreams" across the US, the company said on Thursday. The cereal contains zinc, folic acid, B vitamins, and "a nighttime herbal blend," all of which "support natural melatonin production," according to the company.
Those ingredients make the cereal "designed to be part of a healthy sleep routine while still satisfying those nighttime food cravings," Post said in an announcement. Sweet Dreams will come in two flavors: Blueberry Midnight and Honey Moonglow.
"More than ever, consumers are looking to embrace acts of self-care, particularly as it relates to bedtime routines and we believe a relaxing bedtime routine is key to a good night's sleep," Post Senior Brand Manager Logan Sohn said in a statement.
Post's more established cereal brands include Honey Bunches of Oats, Honey Comb, and Grape Nuts.
Sales of foods, beverages, supplements, and other products that help people sleep totaled $74.3 billion in 2021, according to Precedence Research. That's expected to increase to nearly $125 billion by 2030, the company said in a report last year.
Other companies, like supplement brand Olly, which makes gummies designed for before-bed use, are also trying to cash in on the growth.
Companies that make breakfast cereal got a sales boost during the early years of the pandemic as consumers bought more packaged foods to eat at home. But inflation and a society returning to normal habits has created challenges for some big food companies.
Post's sales of cereal in its consumer segment were up 9% in the quarter ended December 31. The company raised prices enough to offset lower sales volumes of products like Honey Bunches of Oats.