Cookie Policy

This Cookie Notice applies to any web page operated by or on behalf of Ardent Mills, LLC and its affiliated companies (together, “Ardent Mills”), which may include other interactive properties linked through this and other web pages that post this Cookie Notice (“Sites”). References in this Cookie Notice to “we” and through similar words such as “us,” “our,” etc. refer to Ardent Mills as the operator and distributor of the Sites.

By clicking to accept cookies, you are consenting to our use of cookies and similar technologies in accordance with this Cookie Notice and as further described by following the link in the footer to our Cookie Management Page. If you do not agree to our use of cookies and similar technologies, you can modify your cookies settings or opt out of “sharing” for cross context advertising, as defined by California and similar terms under other states laws, for the Sites by clicking here to Cookie Settings and following the link in the footer. Although you are not required to accept cookies when you visit the Sites, please be aware that restricting cookies may impact how the Sites operate for you, and you may be unable to use all of the functionality of the Sites if you reject certain cookies.

The website tools we use or allow are an accepted part of e-commerce and important to your use of the Sites. Like many online platforms, Ardent Mills and its analytics vendors use server logs and automated data collection tools, such as browser cookies, pixel tags, scripts and web beacons. These tools are used for analytics purposes to enable Ardent Mills to understand how users interact with the Sites.

The information collected by cookies does not explicitly identify you by name, but some information may be considered personal information in certain jurisdictions; it includes, but is not limited to, general information about your computer settings, your connection to the Internet (e.g. operating system and platform, IP address, your browsing patterns, and timings of browsing on the website), and your location. Ardent Mills and its analytics vendors may also tie the information gathered by the cookies to the identity of users. Location data may be collected through targeting cookies and is typically used for purposes such as providing targeted advertisements that are relevant to your geographical location but will not provide precise location information.

Further details about the types of cookies that Ardent Mills utilizes can be found below. Any personal information you do provide to us through the Sites would be governed by Ardent Mills’ Privacy Notice.

1. WHAT IS A COOKIE?

Cookies (and similar technologies like pixels, web beacons, etc.) are pieces of data issued by a website that, among other things, allow your computer to utilize all the features on the website. If and when your computer accepts a cookie, the cookie may be stored on the computer’s hard drive.

Below we provide more information about the specific types of cookies utilized by the Sites, and what those cookies do.

1. WHAT DATA IS COLLECTED BY COOKIES?

Each time a computer visits the Sites we may collect certain data from that computer. This data is automatically collected from the computer’s web browser and may include data such as the following:

• the type of web browser software the computer uses (for example, Google Chrome or Internet Explorer);
• the name of the domain from which the computer accessed the Internet;
• the Internet address of the website from which the computer linked directly to the Sites;
• the date and time the computer accessed the Sites.

We may use this data to help us make the Sites more useful to you and for other business purposes. For example, we may tell business partners how many computers visited the Sites or what pages were most popular. We may prepare reports and other materials using the data. We may use this data for any other purposes as described herein and may share the data with third parties.

• BROWSER SETTINGS AND UNIVERSAL OPT-OUT

At this time, Ardent Mills’ websites are not able to recognize and or respond to certain browser preference signals or opt-out settings such as Global Privacy Control (“GPC”) or Do Not Track. GPC and “Do Not Track” are browser settings that notify websites of an individual’s privacy preferences. For example, “Do Not Track” is a preference you can set in your web browser to inform websites you visit that you do not wish to be tracked via certain technology like cookies and pixels. Such browser settings must be supported by the website you are visiting to be effective. Ardent Mills is not currently able to support such browser codes, so Ardent Mills will not automatically acknowledge and or respond to your particular settings when you access our websites. However, you may make a request to opt-out of or limit any processing activities as described herein or through the links available on our websites.

1. WHAT KIND OF COOKIES DO THE SITES USE?

Session cookies are used to identify a particular visit to Sites and collect information about your interaction with those Sites. These cookies expire after a short time or when the user closes their web browser after using the Sites. Ardent Mills uses these cookies to identify a user during a single browsing session. This helps Ardent Mills improve the Sites, as well as improve the users' browsing experience.

A persistent cookie will remain on a user's device for a set period of time specified in the cookie or until you manually delete your cookies via your browser. These cookies do not expire when you close your browser. By assigning your computer a unique identifier through a persistent cookie, we are able to create a database of your previous choices and preferences which can be provided by us automatically, saving you time and effort on future visits.

In addition, Ardent Mills may use tracking technology to determine if a certain page was visited or whether an email sent by Ardent Mills was opened or clicked on by a user and to customize the experience of individual users by recommending specific content.

1. Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly necessary cookies enable basic functions on the Sites, like page navigation and access to secure areas of the Sites. The Sites cannot function properly without these cookies. As such, necessary cookies will always be collected regardless of your cookie settings. Necessary cookies are used for the following purposes, including:

• Preserving your website session state across page requests;
• Distributing traffic to the Sites across several servers in order to optimize response times and improve your website experience;
• Identifying trusted web traffic to keep the Sites secure;
• Storing your cookie consent state for the current Sites you’re visiting.

2. Functional/Preference Cookies

Functional (also referred to as Preference) cookies, which are a type of persistent cookie, enable the Sites to remember information that changes the way the website behaves or looks during your experience, like your preferred language, the font text appears in, or the region that you’re located in. Preference cookies are used to establish a unique user ID that recognizes you on returning visits in order to improve and personalize your website experience. For example, Ardent Mills uses preference cookies in the following ways:

• provide a more personalized experience to users with more relevant content and content recommendations;
• allow users to more easily log in to use the Sites;
• remember information about a user's browser and settings preferences, such as preferred language, to make a your experience more functional and customized;
• make the experience of using the Sites better, like remembering the sound volume level selected by the user;
• test different versions of the Sites to see which particular features or content users prefer to optimize the Sites;
• authentication and security cookies to enable you to log in or stay logged in to access the Sites, protect user accounts against fraudulent log-ins by others, and help detect and protect against abuse or unauthorized usage of user accounts.

3. Performance/Statistics Cookies

Performance (also referred to as Statistics) cookies help us understand how visitors interact with the Sites by collecting and reporting information anonymously. Statistics cookies are used for the following purposes:

• Anonymously logging details about your browser and computer through a website like Google Analytics;
• Collecting anonymous data on your visits to the Sites, such as the number of visits, average time spent on the website and what pages have been loaded, in order to generate reports for optimizing the Sites’ content;
• Determining what type of device (smartphones, tablets, computers, TVs etc.) is being used to access the Sites;
• Gathering anonymous, technical information regarding your browser, operating system, IP address and screen resolution as well as your navigation on the website.

4. Targeting/Lead Cookies

Targeting (also referred to as Lead, Advertising or Marketing) cookies are used to track visitors across the Sites and possibly other websites. The intention is to display ads that are relevant and engaging for each individual user of the Sites. You may opt out of the collection of marketing cookies at any time by . Marketing cookies are used for the following purposes:

• Registering a unique ID that identifies your device for the purpose of targeted ads, auto-populating forms, validating if certain contact information is correct, keeping statistics about third party sites used/accessed through the Sites;
• Registering anonymized user data, such as IP address, geographical location, visited websites, and what ads you have clicked, with the purpose of optimizing ad display based on your movement on websites that use the same ad network;
• Collecting data on your visits to the website, such as what pages have been accessed, number of visits, average time spent on the website, in order to categorize your interest and demographic profiles in terms of resales for targeted marketing, identifying traffic patterns on the Sites, and carrying out surveys to better understand your preferences;
• Evaluating efficacy of advertisements and likelihood of groups to engage with the Sites and purchase Ardent Mills products or services;
• Registering your sharing of content via social media.

1. DO THIRD PARTIES GET MY COOKIE INFORMATION?

Ardent Mills may use Service Providers to provide site metrics and other analytics services, for example:

• Reviewing and analyzing user browser and wireless device technical information;
• Reviewing user activity across site(s) (for example, Ardent Mills analyzes trends, user traffic and usage information to determine the performance of content, research reports, or events);
• Measuring, tracking and analyzing trends and usage in connection with your use or the performance of our Sites; and
• Determining the popularity of certain content, and to better understand how you use our Sites.

We and/or such third parties also may use these technologies to collect information about your online activities over time and across third-party websites or other online services (behavioral tracking).

Additionally, our Sites may include social media features, such as the Facebook Like button. Our integration of these features may allow third-party social media to collect certain information, such as your IP address and which page(s) you are visiting when using our Sites, and to set a cookie to enable that feature to function properly. Your interactions with these features are governed by the privacy policy of the Ardent Mills providing such features.

The Service Providers that we engage are bound by confidentiality obligations and other restrictions with respect to their use and collection of your information.

1. THIRD PARTY AD NETWORKS

Ardent Mills may use third parties, such as network advertisers, to serve advertisements on third party websites or other media (for example, a third-party social networking website). This enables Ardent Mills and these third parties to target advertisements on those third-party websites to you for products offered by us and products and websites offered by third parties in which you might be interested. Third party ad network providers, advertisers, sponsors, and/or traffic measurement websites may use cookies, JavaScript, Web beacons, flash cookies, or local shared objects and other tracking technologies to measure the effectiveness of their ads and to personalize advertising content to you.

This Cookie Notice does not apply to those third parties, and we cannot control their activities. You should consult the respective privacy or cookie policies of these third-party ad servers or ad networks for more information on their practices and for instructions on how to opt-out of certain practices. For example, you may go to the Digital Advertising Alliance (“DAA”) Consumer Choice Page for information about opting out of interest-based advertising and choices regarding having information used by DAA companies. You may also go to the Network Advertising Initiative (“NAI”) Consumer Opt-Out Page for information about opting out of interest-based advertising and choices regarding having information used by third party companies who are NAI members. 

Opting out from one or more companies listed on the DAA Consumer Choice Page or the NAI Consumer Opt-Out Page will remove you from those companies’ delivery of interest-based content or ads to you, but it does not mean you will no longer receive any advertising through the Sites or on other third party websites. Even if you opt-out from one or more companies listed on the DAA Consumer Choice Page or the NAI Consumer Opt-Out Page, you may continue to receive advertisements, for example, based on the particular website that you are viewing (i.e., contextually based ads). Also, if your browsers are configured to reject cookies when you opt-out on the DAA or NAI websites, your opt-out action may not be effective. Additional information is available on the DAA’s website at www.aboutads.info or the NAI’s website at https://www.networkadvertising.org/.