Maxwell House Plant's Owner Sells Coffee Business in $650 Million Deal: What It Means for Jacksonville's Downtown Landmark, in Use Since 1924

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Kraft Heinz has agreed to sell its North American coffee business, including the Maxwell House plant on Jacksonville's Downtown riverfront, to an affiliate of the private equity firm One Rock Capital Partners, the company announced Nov. 4. The deal values the business at $650 million, according to News4JAX and CNBC. The plant at 735 E. Bay St. is the last remaining U.S. Maxwell House plant, according to both News4JAX and the Jacksonville Daily Record.

About 250 employees are expected to transfer with the business, according to News4JAX. The deal is expected to close in mid-2027, pending regulatory approval and other customary conditions, according to News4JAX and CNBC. Kraft Heinz did not say how many people work at the Jacksonville plant specifically, according to the Daily Record.

The deal by the numbers

Kraft Heinz said it will use the roughly $500 million in after-tax proceeds to reduce debt, according to News4JAX and CNBC. CNBC reported that the sale is part of the company's effort to narrow its focus to core brands. CEO Steve Cahillane called the deal "a meaningful step in unlocking value from our portfolio," according to CNBC.

Which brands and plants are included

The sale covers Maxwell House, Gevalia, Nabob, Yuban, Tassimo, Ethical Bean and Sanka, according to News4JAX. It also includes coffee manufacturing in Vancouver, British Columbia, in addition to the Jacksonville plant, the report said. The Daily Record reported that coffee sales across all of the brands rose 6.5% in the first six months of the year, to $457 million.

One Rock Managing Partner Tony Lee said the firm has long admired the brands, according to News4JAX. He said the firm intends to accelerate investment across the portfolio to drive growth and innovation, according to the Daily Record. The reports did not describe any plans for the Jacksonville plant itself.

The Jacksonville plant

Maxwell House has operated at the Bay Street site since 1924, according to the Daily Record. The company demolished a building from 1926 on the complex in January, the newspaper reported. The plant is the only one of its kind left in the United States for the brand.

The brand once had plants across the country. The Daily Record reported that Maxwell House sold a Houston plant in 2006 and closed a San Leandro, California, plant in 2017, which left Jacksonville as the only U.S. plant. In 1990, the company decided to close one of its two East Coast plants, prompting a "Keep Max in Jax" campaign, and it closed its Hoboken, New Jersey, plant instead, according to the same account.

Years of sale talk

Kraft Heinz has looked at selling Maxwell House for years, the Daily Record reported. Financial outlets reported in 2019 that the brand was for sale, and later reports said the company backed off when it could not get its desired price. The company never officially commented on those reports, according to the newspaper.

CNBC reported that Cahillane has paused a planned split of the company and put about $700 million back into the business. Kraft Heinz shares rose about 5% on the morning of the announcement, according to CNBC, after third-quarter results beat expectations. CNBC also reported that the company improved its 2026 outlook.

What is still unknown

Several details were not disclosed in the reports. The Daily Record said exact terms were not disclosed beyond the figures above, and neither News4JAX nor CNBC said whether any jobs would be added, cut or moved. The reports also did not say whether the Downtown site would remain a coffee plant under the new owner.

The sale is not expected to close for more than half a year, so the plant remains under Kraft Heinz ownership for now. Anyone who works at the plant or in the supply chain should look for communication from their employer, since the news reports did not include an employee-specific statement. The Jacksonville Daily Record and News4JAX are the best places to follow updates as the regulatory review moves ahead.