P&G may spin off Folgers coffee

Procter &Gamble Co. might spin off, instead of sell, its Folgers coffee business.

Media reports, cited unidentified sources, said the Cincinnati-based company, which has said it is exploring sales of slower-growing brands, was interested in a spinoff for tax reasons. The reports appeared in the online versions of the Financial Times and The Wall Street Journal among other news outlets.

P&G (NYSE:PG) spokesman Doug Shelton said the company wouldn't comment on 'rumor and speculation.'
P&G said last August that it was reviewing its portfolio and taking a look at businesses that were at the lower end of annual sales growth goals of 4 percent to 6 percent. The company hasn't named the businesses it's considering divesting, but analysts have said Folgers, Duracell batteries and Pringles chips were among the most likely to go.