SAN DIEGO, CA – CLR Roasters, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Youngevity International, Inc., announces it has signed a five (5) year direct sourcing and supply agreement with H&H Export to purchase green coffee directly from select coffee plantations in Nicaragua.
The comprehensive agreement provides CLR Roasters with a direct supply of up to 25 million pounds of green coffee over its five (5) year term, that is, up to 5 million pounds for each year of the agreement, 100% of which will be Arabica, Strictly High Grown, and Washed Coffees.
The agreement provides direct supply of coffee from the Siles Plantation, which is located at one of the highest points in the Nicaraguan rain forest and believed to encompass the highest quality coffee produced in the region.
Coffees from this specific Plantation will be used exclusively to produce coffee benefiting Youngevity’s Be the Change Foundation. In continuity with the charitable giving that is expected to result from Youngevity’s
Foundation the agreement also provides a vehicle for CLR Roasters to give back much needed funds to specific plantation owners and those families working the fields.
Under the agreement, an aggregate of 1 million shares of YGYI stock are to be issued to H&H Export, and will vest over the five-year term of the agreement, provided that 50% of the shares (i.e., 500,000) will not vest until the final year of the term.
Steve Wallach, Chief Executive Officer of Youngevity International, is contributing the shares to implement this agreement for the benefit of the Company from his personal holdings. Mr. Wallach said, “I am very pleased that we were able to deliver a comprehensive arrangement that benefits both social causes and believe will contribute to shareholder value over the long term.
I maintain my commitment to growing our business without diluting our shareholders.”
Dave Briskie, Youngevity International’s Chief Financial Officer, stated, “We have been working on this agreement since our trip to Nicaragua earlier this year.
We identified the best of the best in green coffee and we set out to reach an arrangement that benefits all involved and believe this agreement accomplishes those objectives. We expect to provide funding to our Foundation, help the plantation workers of Nicaragua, and deliver the finest quality coffee available.
To accomplish all of this while significantly improving the gross margins of CLR Roasters is quite an achievement for our business.”
Milan Rodriguez, Director of Marketing and Sales of H&H Export and related to the Siles Plantation stated, “I believe that a partnership between Siles Plantation, H & H Coffee and CLR Roasters/Youngevity will set new standards of how companies can work together and balance profitability with social responsibility.
We are proud to be working closely with the fine people of Youngevity and CLR Roasters and we are committed to enabling people to achieve more by improving their quality of life. The Siles Family takes great pride in being associated with the Youngevity Be the Change Foundation.”
