Amsterdam, July 5th, 2012 - D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 N.V. notifies that today, The Hillshire Brands Company - the US company, formerly known as Sara Lee Corporation, from which D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 spun off on Thursday June 28th 2012 - has filed a Form 8-K with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission with respect to the completion of the spin-off and the related financial statement impacts.
The unaudited pro forma consolidated financial information of Hillshire Brands adjusts the historical financial information to give effect to the spin-off. The CoffeeCo financials in the Form 8-K include the results of the international coffee and tea operations as well as various designated items as defined by the Master Separation Agreement, which was filed on a Form 8-K dated June 15, 2012.
It is to be noted that the CoffeeCo financials contained in the aforementioned Form 8-K may differ substantially from what D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 would have reported for the periods presented as the CoffeeCo financials in the aforementioned Form 8-K:
a) are prepared in accordance with US GAAP instead of IFRS;
b) reflect the segmental performance of the international coffee and tea operations as defined by Hillshire Brands instead of the performance on a stand-alone basis of D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753;
c) reflect a different presentation within the income statement for certain items like 'Financial income/(expense) related to pensions' and 'Mark-to-market of currency derivatives on raw material purchase commitments';
d) are stated in US Dollar instead of Euro; and
e) are pro forma unaudited.
D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 will publish its results for fiscal year 2012 on Tuesday August 28th 2012 at 8:00 am CET.
Forward-Looking Information
This press release and other documents and statements of D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 contain certain forward-looking statements generally preceded by terms such as "expects", "projects", "anticipates" or "believes". These forward-looking statements are based on currently available competitive, financial and economic data, as well as management's views and assumptions regarding future events. Such forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and investors must recognize that actual results may differ from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Consequently, D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 wishes to caution readers not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Among the factors that could cause D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753's actual results to differ from such forward-looking statements are those described in the Registration Statement on Form F-1 (Registration No. 333-179839) filed by D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
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About D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753
D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 is a leading pure-play coffee and tea company that offers an extensive range of high-quality, innovative products through well-known brands such as Douwe Egberts, Senseo, L'OR, Pilão, Merrild, Moccona, Pickwick and Hornimans in both retail and out of home markets. The company holds a number of leading market positions across Europe, Brazil, Australia and Thailand and its products are sold in more than 45 countries. D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 generated sales of more than € 2.6 billion in fiscal year 2011 and employs around 7.500 people worldwide. For more information, please visit www.demasterblenders1753.com (http://www.demasterblenders1753.com/).
| Contact | Investor Relations | Corporate Communications |
| Robin Jansen | Michiel Quarles van Ufford | |
| +31 20 558 1014 | +31 20 558 1080 | |
| investor-relations@DEMB.com (mailto:investor-relations@DEMB.com) | media-relations@DEMB.com (mailto:media-relations@DEMB.com) |
The owner of this announcement warrants that:
(i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and
(ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the
information contained therein.
Source: D.E MASTER BLENDERS 1753 via Thomson Reuters ONE

