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Sara Lee Announces Sale of Its Foodservice Direct Store Delivery Coffee Business to Farmer Brothers Company

  //house-home.news-articles.net/content/2008/12/0 .. -coffee-business-to-farmer-brothers-company.html
  Published in House and Home on Wednesday, December 3rd 2008 at 14:50 GMT by Market Wire

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill.--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Sara Lee Corp. (NYSE: SLE) announced a definitive agreement to sell its U.S. Direct Store Delivery (DSD) Foodservice coffee business to Farmer Bros. Co. (Nasdaq: FARM). The $45 million sale is expected to close in the first quarter of calendar 2009.

"We are pleased to announce the sale of our Foodservice DSD coffee business, which is consistent with our commitment to simplifying our business to focus on areas where we have a clear, sustainable point of difference and can leverage our scale," said CJ Fraleigh, chief operating officer, North America, Sara Lee Corporation. "We remain committed to growing our Foodservice beverage business, with its leading liquid and roast and ground coffee positions, through our strong national sales force and distributor network."

As part of the transaction, the Superior Coffee, Cain's, Ireland, Justin Lloyd, McGarvey, Metropolitan, Prebica, Suntipt (U.S. only), Wechsler, Café Royal and Royal Kona brands will be sold to Farmer Bros., which will license these brands back to Sara Lee for a transition period. In addition, Farmer Bros. will acquire more than 20,000 additional customers and Sara Lee's Foodservice DSD coffee business sales and distribution staff and infrastructure, which includes more than 60 "branch" facilities and a fleet of vehicles, a major coffee manufacturing plant in Houston and a distribution and spice facility in Oklahoma City. Finally, for the next three years Farmer Bros. and Sara Lee have entered into reciprocal co-pack arrangements for the supply of certain coffee and tea products.

This action originally was referenced in a Form 8-K filed by the company on July 22, 2008, where Sara Lee concluded that certain assets in its Foodservice segment should be classified as held-for-disposal. Sara Lee also recorded a non-cash pre-tax impairment charge of $49 million, as disclosed in the company's annual report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in Form 10-K on August 27, 2008.

About Sara Lee Corporation

Each and every day, Sara Lee (NYSE: SLE) delights millions of consumers and customers around the world. The company has one of the world's best-loved and leading portfolios with its innovative and trusted food, beverage, household and body care brands, including Ambi Pur, Ball Park, Douwe Egberts, Hillshire Farm, Jimmy Dean, Kiwi, Sanex, Sara Lee and Senseo. Collectively, these brands generate more than $13 billion in annual net sales covering approximately 200 countries. The Sara Lee community consists of 44,000 employees worldwide. Please visit [ www.saralee.com ] for the latest news and in-depth information about Sara Lee and its brands.

About Farmer Bros. Co.

Farmer Bros. Co. is a manufacturer and distributor of coffee, tea and spices to the institutional foodservice segment in the United States. The company's product line includes approximately 400 items, including roasted coffee; coffee related products such as coffee filters, sugar and creamers; assorted teas; cocoa; spices; and soup and beverage bases. It primarily serves restaurants, hotels and hospitals, as well as retailers such as convenience stores, coffee houses, general merchandisers and grocery stores. The company was founded in 1912, is based in Torrance, Calif. and its stock trades on Nasdaq under the symbol "FARM."