{"id":"a594092f-6d72-4049-b6c7-f8beb314cdab","slug":"james-ford-bell","name":"James Ford Bell","bioBrief":"American business leader and philanthropist (1879-1961) who founded General Mills in 1928 by consolidating Washburn-Crosby with other regional mills. Served as president and chairman of the merged company for many years. Previously led Washburn-Crosby, the Minneapolis flour miller behind Gold Medal flour, and pioneered branded flour marketing. A University of Minnesota regent for 24 years and a major philanthropist to the university's libraries and medical research.","priorExits":null,"nationality":"American","verificationPosture":"verified","aliases":[],"sources":[{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Mills","name":"Wikipedia","title":"General Mills — Wikipedia"},{"url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Ford_Bell","title":"James Ford Bell","sourceName":"Wikipedia"},{"url":"https://www.generalmills.com/news-and-stories/stories/60-years-of-food-research-and-innovation-at-jfb","title":"60 years of food research and innovation at JFB","sourceName":"General Mills"}],"reviewStatus":"reviewed","createdAt":"2026-08-15T03:05:02.791Z","updatedAt":"2026-08-16T17:33:03.973Z","educations":[],"companyRoles":[{"id":"5ea1e0fd-a4db-431b-8732-722be361dc28","personId":"a594092f-6d72-4049-b6c7-f8beb314cdab","companyId":"a6baedfc-373c-41ba-ae1c-8a6a3280ac4b","role":"founder","roleTitle":"Founder (General Mills consolidation)","startDate":null,"endDate":null,"currentRole":false,"roleBasis":null,"createdAt":"2026-08-15T03:05:03.616Z","company":{"slug":"general-mills","name":"General Mills"}}],"boardRoles":[],"investorRoles":[],"foundings":[{"id":"1e9a26e5-7453-4f78-88ad-9d9a1e6b1fd0","personId":"a594092f-6d72-4049-b6c7-f8beb314cdab","companyId":"a6baedfc-373c-41ba-ae1c-8a6a3280ac4b","foundingDate":"1928-01-01T00:00:00.000Z","cofounderStatus":"cofounder","stillAtCompany":false,"createdAt":"2026-08-16T17:33:42.275Z","company":{"slug":"general-mills","name":"General Mills"}}]}