McDonald’s plans to start selling its packaged coffee at U.S. supermarkets nationally by early next year, a move intended to help raise the profile of the coffee sold at its U.S. restaurants.
The world’s biggest hamburger chain is partnering with Kraft Foods to manufacture and distribute the bags of McCafe ground and whole bean coffee, as well as single-cup pods that can be used in at-home coffee machines.
Other chains, such as Starbucks and Dunkin’ Donuts, already sell branded packaged coffee at retailers.
McDonald’s Corp. and Kraft Foods had said last year they were testing the packaged coffee in select markets. McDonald’s has highlighted coffee as a key growth opportunity for the company, with CEO Don Thompson saying it can help get customers in restaurants.
