By Martinne Geller
(Reuters)
- LBP Manufacturing Inc, a supplier of packaging to coffee chains including
Starbucks and Dunkin' Donuts, will soon sell filters for single-serve coffee,
another move in the expected onslaught of competition for Green Mountain Coffee
Roasters Inc.
Matt
Cook, president of the privately held company, said the product, called the
UpShot, will launch in the fall. He declined to identify the brands that will
use LBP's technology, saying it was premature.
Cook
said the UpShot would be recyclable and could be tailored to the needs of
customers, which could range from private label manufacturers of single-serve
coffee cups to other coffee brands not yet selling single-serve portions.
The
U.S. market for single-serve coffee is dominated by Green Mountain and its
Keurig system, but the expiration this month of certain patents related to the
design of its "K-Cups" has opened the door to a host of lower-cost
competitors.
TreeHouse
Foods, which manufactures foods and drinks that retailers brand as their own,
said separately on Wednesday that the company was on track to enter the
single-serve coffee market in the fourth quarter.
Supermarket
operator Supervalu said on Tuesday that it would launch this month its own
brand of coffee in single-serve portions, following similar moves from rivals
Kroger and Safeway.
Market
leader Green Mountain has said that the anticipated entry of unlicensed
competitors is factored into its forecasts and that its broad product range
would continue to drive sales.
It
also says that it plans to continue protecting its patents. The company, whose
stock price has been hammered by concerns about the sustainability of its
profit margins, has already sued two manufacturers of Keurig-compatible coffee
cups for patent infringement.
LBP's
Cook said he was "extremely comfortable" with the UpShot product, and
its position in the marketplace.
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(Reporting By Martinne Geller in New York; Editing by Tim
Dobbyn)