Starbucks to open U.S. juice bars in 2012

(Reuters) - Starbucks Corp plans to start a chain of juice bars starting next year, venturing into territory staked out by Jamba Inc , in its biggest-ever expansion beyond coffee.
The world's largest coffee chain, which has made no secret of its ambitions to expand beyond its staple business, said on Thursday it bought juice company Evolution Fresh for $30 million in cash.
Chief Executive Officer Howard Schultz hopes buying Evolution Fresh, whose products are sold by a handful of retailers, including Whole Foods Market Inc , will give the company a meaningful foothold in the estimated $50 billion health food market.

The first juice bars will open on the U.S. West Coast around the middle of next year, but the company would not say how many were planned. The chain's name has not been revealed and it was not clear whether Starbucks' familiar Mermaid logo -- which recently dropped the word "coffee" from its design -- would be displayed in the stores, which also will sell food. continue reading