SEATTLE & WATERBURY, Vt., March 21, 2012 - Starbucks Coffee Company (NASDAQ: SBUX) and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. (GMCR) (NASDAQ: GMCR), a leader in specialty coffee and coffee makers, today announced the expansion of their strategic relationship for the manufacturing, marketing, distribution and sale of Starbucks-branded Vue^™ packs for use in GMCR’s recently introduced Keurig^® Vue^™ Brewer.

“We are proud to expand our relationship with Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and are looking forward to working with our colleagues at GMCR to further accelerate growth in premium single-serve coffee,” said Jeff Hansberry, president, Channel Development, for Starbucks. “Premium single cup is the fastest-growing segment of global coffee, and the expansion of our relationship with GMCR allows us to grow further, faster, in the single cup category.”

Starbucks is the exclusive, licensed super-premium coffee brand produced by GMCR for the Keurig K-Cup^® Single Cup Brewing system and now, with the expanded relationship, the new Vue^™ system. According to the terms of the agreement, Keurig^® is the exclusive low-pressure (30 psi or under), single cup brewing system of its kind offering fresh-brewed Starbucks^® coffee and Tazo^® tea. Starbucks and GMCR expect GMCR to distribute Starbucks Vue^™ packs initially in specialty, department store, and mass retailers in the U.S. as well as on GMCR’s consumer direct websites by fall 2012.

“The success of our Keurig^® Single Cup Brewing system has been driven by choice – choice of coffee brands and beverage varieties, and choice of brewer features and models. With the introduction of Vue^™ we’ve expanded that choice even further, giving consumers a brewer with features and functionality they’ve told us they value most,” said Lawrence J. Blanford, GMCR president and CEO. “We believe the customization offered by Vue^™ and its appeal as a premium beverage solution will resonate with loyal Starbucks consumers, and we’re pleased to have Starbucks^® coffee as a brand option in the system as we move forward.”

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