Kraft signs deal with Costa Coffee

Kraft Foods Inc signed a deal to allow Costa Coffee stores in the United Kingdom to sell its Tassimo single-cup coffee machines, Bloomberg reported. The announcement on 19 April will also see Costa Coffee beverages available using Kraft Foods machines. Starting in May, Kraft’s Tassimo machines and Costa Coffee cappuccino, latte and Americana single-serve discs will be available in Costa stores in the southwest of England. “We're stepping up our efforts to win in the retail on-demand coffee segment, and this new agreement with Costa is an example of that,” Hubert Weber, President of Coffee for Kraft Foods Europe, says. Brands already available via the Kraft Tassimo machines at Costa Coffee stores include Jacobs, Kenco and Gevalia coffee, Milka and Cadbury hot chocolate and Twinings teas. Costa Coffee currently has more than 2000 stores in 25 countries. Kraft is expected to separate into two publicly traded companies this year – one sector will carry the Kraft name and cover brands like Maxwell House coffee, and the other will be called Mondelez International Inc and focus on snack brands such as Cadbury chocolates.