Keurig Green Mountain has announced a multi-year licensing, manufacturing, and distribution agreement for Kraft’s branded coffees in Keurig® portion pack formats compatible with Keurig® consumer and commercial brewing systems in the U.S.
Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
"We hear time and time again that consumers consistently choose the Keurig brewing system for the quality, simplicity, value, and, most importantly, the variety of brands and beverages available in the system," said Brian Kelley, Keurig's President and CEO. "Adding Kraft's celebrated brands to the licensed Keurig family means Keurig consumers will be able to enjoy even more beverages they know and love with the quality and consistency they expect from their Keurig brewer."
"At Kraft, we have made significant strides in rejuvenating our coffee business across all segments - including mainstream, premium and on-demand - by focusing on driving profitable growth for our brands and our customers," said Dino Bianco, Kraft's Executive Vice President and President, Beverages. "This agreement offers the opportunity for expanded distribution across multiple channels, and is another example of our focus on long-term growth in action."
With this new agreement, consumers in the U.S. can enjoy their favorite Kraft coffee brands, Maxwell House®, Gevalia® and Yuban®, along with McCafé®, in a variety of licensed Keurig portion pack formats for both the at-home and away-from-home channels including:
* K-Cup® packs: brew the perfect cup of coffee, for use in Keurig K-Cup® Single Cup Brewers, the forthcoming Keurig 2.0 Brewing System, and available through Keurig Authorized Distributors for away-from-home channels.
* K-Carafe™ pack: a single portion pack optimized to brew four cups of coffee into a specially designed Keurig® carafe, exclusively for use in the Keurig 2.0 Brewing System.
* Keurig Bolt™ pack: a single portion pack containing the right amount of coffee to brew a high-quality, fresh half-gallon pot of coffee from a single pack; exclusive for use in the Keurig® BOLT™ Carafe Brewing System and ideally suited for large office and food service locations.
Kraft offers an assortment of mainstream and premium coffee varieties and flavors, each with its own rich history spanning centuries of coffee excellence.
* Originally invented in 1892, Maxwell House coffees are expertly roasted to always stay "Good to the Last Drop."
* Refining the art of luxurious coffee since 1853, Gevalia Kaffe is made with carefully selected beans - ground extra fine - to produce a rich, never bitter coffee experience, inspired by 150 years of Swedish coffee-crafting expertise.
* Created in 1905 and expertly roasted in California for the last 60 years, Yuban coffee delivers a distinctive signature taste preserved by sealing in the freshness of coffee beans known for their superior quality and rich aroma.
* McDonald's and Kraft announced a collaboration to expand the manufacture, marketing and distribution of the McDonald's McCafé brand in grocery stores nationwide. Made with 100% Arabica beans, McCafé packaged coffees will allow consumers to enjoy the McCafé experience at home.
Keurig licensed Kraft-branded portion packs will begin to launch in fall 2014. Initially, both Kraft and Keurig will handle manufacturing for single-serving pods. Following a planned transition period, Keurig will become the exclusive manufacturer of Kraft-branded Keurig® packs using coffee sourced, roasted, and blended by Kraft.
Keurig® hot system brewers use innovative brewing technology to deliver a fresh-brewed, perfect single cup of hot or brewed over ice coffee, tea, cocoa, or fruit brews every time at just the touch of a button. With the imminent launch of the next generation Keurig 2.0 Brewer, Keurig® consumers will be able to brew both a single cup and a carafe of coffee from a Keurig® brand pack. Consumers also will get the same Keurig® quality, simplicity and beverage choice they expect with more than 50 brands and more than 290 beverage varieties currently available, all brewed with Keurig's new beverage-optimizing brewing technology.
