Westwood, MA -- August 5, 2003 -- Van Houtte Inc. (TSX: VH) announced today that it has completed six acquisitions in the U.S. and Canada. The U.S. coffee service operations were acquired by the company's subsidiary, Filterfresh Coffee Service Inc.

The businesses were purchased for a total cash consideration of approximately $8 million. (All dollar amounts are in Canadian currency). They are expected to generate $7 million in sales and $1.8 million in EBITDA over the next year.

"We are pleased to acquire several well-operated and highly-regarded coffee service operations," said Roger Cohen, president of Filterfresh Coffee Service Inc. and Van Houtte USA. "The acquisitions strengthen our existing business by adding density in several key regions and enhance our market share and customer base."

Filterfresh Chicago, a joint venture with partners Verinder Syal and Meynard Heydanek, currently services 850 accounts in the Chicago area, one of the largest U.S. cities and a premier coffee services market. The company has been acquired by Filterfresh Coffee Service to become a company-owned operation. Mr. Heydanek will become general manager of the new operation and Mr. Syal will remain on board temporarily to assist in the transition.

Filterfresh Coffee Service Inc. has also acquired Filterfresh Indianapolis from franchise owner Peter Lashmet and formed a joint venture with Filterfresh Tri-State and its owner Jim Hood and Filterfresh Bluegrass and its owner Steve Mazzoni. Filterfresh Indianapolis will now operate as a joint venture with Filterfresh Coffee Service Inc. and Mr. Hood and Mr. Mazzoni.

In Columbus, Crimson Cup Coffee and Tea is a gourmet coffee roaster that recently developed an office coffee route as a result of its customers requesting Crimson Coffee in their offices. Filterfresh has acquired this operation and will merge it with the existing Filterfresh Columbus location.

Also in the Midwest, Al Price Coffee is a traditional office coffee operation that has been in business for 26 years. Filterfresh will assume its 400 customers and integrate the company into the Filterfresh St. Louis operation. Al Price Coffee owner and operator Herschel Price will stay on board temporarily to assist in the transition.

In Canada, Van Houtte has acquired Select-A-Cup Coffee Service, the largest coffee service operation in the Southwestern Ontario marketplace with more than 1,400 customers. The company will be merged into Van Houtte's existing branch operations in Kitchener, London, Windsor and Mount Forest. Additionally, Metro Coffee Services, owned and operated since its inception by Jay Hamilton, will be merged into Van Houtte's Calgary branch location.

About Van Houtte Inc.
Founded in 1919, Van Houtte is one of North America's leading gourmet coffee roasters, marketers and distributors. The Company markets its gourmet coffees across Canada and the U.S. through distribution channels that include coffee services, retail stores, cafˇ-bistros, online shopping and food services networks. (www.vanhoutte.com)

About Filterfresh Coffee Service, Inc.
Filterfresh Coffee Service, Inc., based in Westwood, Mass., is a subsidiary of Van Houtte Inc. The company, a pioneer in single-cup coffee makers, provides state-of-the-art equipment, beverages, programs and services to offices, manufacturing facilities, supermarkets, hotels, retailers and other places of employment. For further information on Filterfresh, its growth plans or franchise opportunities, visit the Web site at www.filterfresh.com.

This press release contains forward-looking statements reflecting Van Houtte's objectives, estimates and expectations. Such statements may be marked by the use of verbs such as "believe," "anticipate," "estimate" and "expect" as well as the use of the future or conditional tense. By their very nature, such statements involve risks and uncertainty. Consequently, results could differ materially from the Company's projections or expectations. For information on the nature of risk factors not specifically discussed in this release, the reader can consult Van Houtte's annual report for fiscal 2003 under the heading "Risks and Uncertainties," page 329.