Building on its position as the third largest coffee roaster in the world and its success in driving sustainability in its European beverage business, Sara Lee® Foodservice is introducing Good Origin sustainable coffee to the U.S. market.

“The introduction of Good Origin builds on our winning European formula and helps us incorporate sustainability as part of a viable business strategy for coffee producers,” said Mike DePriest, senior brand manager, Sara Lee Foodservice. “Taking a comprehensive approach to sustainability through our partnership with UTZ CERTIFIED Good Inside® makes good business sense for both our customers and our company.

“It provides consumers with great-tasting coffee that they know has been produced responsibly—by balancing people, planet and profit,” DePriest continued.

Sara Lee is the world’s largest buyer of UTZ CERTIFIED Good Inside sustainable coffee. During the past four years, Sara Lee has achieved an eight-fold increase in its sustainable coffee volumes: from 2,500 tons in 2004 to the 20,000 tons it has committed to procure in 2008. Sara Lee introduced the Good Origin brand in countries such as the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Denmark, where consumer demand for sustainable coffee is growing rapidly.

According to UTZ CERTIFIED Good Inside, worldwide sales of its certified sustainable coffee have increased ten-fold over the last five years. The organization credits the evolution of consumer attitudes, which increasingly reflect a desire for quality coffee, along with concern for how coffee production impacts local communities in coffee growing countries.

“While Sara Lee has acted responsibly in the coffee market for many years, partnering with UTZ CERTIFIED Good Inside demonstrates its increasing commitment to sustainable quality,” said Graham Mitchell, general manager, U.S., UTZ CERTIFIED Good Inside. “In fact, Sara Lee is showing its commitment by doubling its purchase of certified sustainable coffee from 2007 to 2008.”

Good Origin Sustainable Coffee is targeted to a wide variety of U.S. markets including colleges and universities, business and industry, healthcare, lodging, national restaurants, convenience stores, and commercial food operations. The new, UTZ CERTIFIED Good Inside coffee is available in three varieties under the Good Origin Premium label (Moyobamba Peru, Terrenos Gemelos, and Copita Madura Decaf) and three varieties under the Good Origin Gourmet label (Pluma de Oaxaca, Tres Joyas, and Copa Oscura Decaf). Each variety is packed in a NaturalBox carton, made with 100 percent post-consumer-recycled-materials.