CINCINNATI and CHICAGO, June 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR) and Home Chef, the country's largest private meal kit company, today finalized a merger that will significantly accelerate availability of meal kits and position the combined company to lead the way in revolutionizing how families shop for, prep, and cook their meals.

"We're excited to welcome Home Chef to The Kroger Family of Companies," says Rodney McMullen, Kroger's chairman and CEO. "The merging of our two innovative, data-driven, and customer-focused cultures will allow us to accelerate our reach across America, serving food inspiration and uplift."

"We couldn't be more excited to join the Kroger family and for what this will mean for millions of customers," said Pat Vihtelic, Home Chef's founder and CEO. "We look forward to bringing Home Chef's simple, convenient and enjoyable meal solutions to Kroger locations."

The initial transaction price is $200 million and future earnout payments of up to $500 million over five years are contingent on achieving certain milestones, including significant growth of in-store and online meal kit sales. The merger comes on the heels of Home Chef's 150% growth in 2017, $250M in revenue, and two profitable quarters.

Kroger will make Home Chef meal kits available to customers, both in stores and online.

To view the original announcement, please visit The Kroger Co. newsroom.

About Kroger
At The Kroger Co. (NYSE: KR), we are dedicated to our Purpose: to Feed the Human Spirit™. We are nearly half a million associates who serve over nine million customers daily through a seamless digital shopping experience and 2,800 retail food stores under a variety of banner names, serving America through food inspiration and uplift, and creating #ZeroHungerZeroWaste communities by 2025. To learn more about us, visit our newsroom and investor relations site.

About Home Chef
Home Chef is one of the largest meal kit delivery companies in the U.S., with over 3 million meals delivered each month. Founded in 2013, Home Chef offers fresh, pre-portioned ingredients and easy to follow recipes delivered weekly and is designed for anyone to be able to cook and everyone to enjoy. The Chicago-based company delivers nationwide from its distribution centers in the Chicago, Atlanta, and Los Angeles areas. For two years running, Home Chef has been rated #1 in customer satisfaction among leading meal kit companies, according to Market Force Information. Find out more and get cooking at www.homechef.com. Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for live updates and delicious inspiration.

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SOURCE Home Chef