Royal Cup Coffee and Tea has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Farmer Brothers Coffee Co. in an all-cash transaction.

The agreement brings together two established coffee and tea organizations, representing nearly 250 years of combined industry experience, and will expand Royal Cup’s national reach and strengthen its capabilities across foodservice and retail channels.

The transaction will align roasting, distribution and equipment service operations into a broader national organization positioned to serve foodservice, hospitality, health care, convenience stores, retail and private label customers with expanded scale and operational reach.

“This is a transformational and strategic step, which we believe materially strengthens our competitive position and advances our long-term growth strategy,” says Royal Cup President and CEO Chip Wann. “This transaction will allow Royal Cup and Farmer Brothers to combine our complementary capabilities and build a more resilient national organization with the infrastructure and products necessary to better support our growing customer base across multiple channels.”

Royal Cup enters the agreement supported by a diversified customer base and sustained performance across its expanding national footprint. The acquisition will enhance Royal Cup’s ability to deliver integrated beverage solutions that combine roasting expertise, route-based distribution and equipment service within a unified operating structure.

“Farmer Brothers and Royal Cup have both been distinguished coffee distributors for more than a century,” says Farmer Brothers President and CEO John Moore. “By combining our tremendous expertise and operational excellence, we will be able to ultimately better serve our nationwide customer base through enhanced manufacturing and production capabilities, an unmatched distribution network and greater economies of scale.”

The transaction, once complete, builds on Royal Cup’s December 2025 partnership with Dallas-based private equity firm Braemont Capital, which provided additional capital and operational support to advance strategic expansion initiatives. Today’s agreement reflects continued execution of that strategy and reinforces Royal Cup’s focus on disciplined growth and scalable infrastructure.

Following closing, the combined organization will be positioned to expand direct store delivery, equipment service coverage and manufacturing capabilities, as well as enhance its supply chain capabilities and strengthen its presence across key growth channels in the national coffee and tea markets.

The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, subject to approval by a majority of Farmer Brothers’ shareholders and other customary closing conditions. Farmer Brothers will combine with Royal Cup and become a private company.