Keurig Green Mountain Inc. and Kraft Foods Group have signed a multiyear 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.
With this new agreement, consumers in the U.S. can enjoy 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, which brews single-serve cups of coffee.
- K-Carafe packs, a single portion pack optimized to brew four cups of coffee.
- Keurig Bolt pack, a single portion pack containing the right amount of coffee to brew a high-quality, fresh half-gallon pot of coffee.
“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.”
Keurig-licensed Kraft-branded portion packs will begin to launch this fall. 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.
“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.”
McDonald’s and Kraft recently announced a collaboration to expand the manufacture, marketing and distribution of the McDonald’s McCafé brand in grocery stores nationwide.
