Supervalu Inc. has filed documents with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission to explore the possible spin-off of its Save-A-Lot business into a separate, publicly traded company.

Supervalu's directors approved the separation of Save-A-Lot, and in a letter to stockholders Sam Duncan, chief executive officer and president of Supervalu, said that upon completion of the separation, Supervalu stockholders would own at least 80.1 percent of the outstanding shares of common stock of Save-A-Lot.

For its part, Save-A-Lot intends to focus on fresh offerings, including reinvigorated produce departments and their relocation to the front of the store. The company has also continued to refine and enhance its fresh produce and meat selection to increase ethnic and regional relevance. Save-A-Lot plans to continue to invest in associate in-store training in an effort to provide perishable offerings that are best in class. The company said, "We believe our fresh offerings and programs are key differentiators of the Save-A-Lot brand."

Supervalu announced in July 2015 that it was exploring a separation of its Save-A-Lot business, and that as part of that process it had begun preparations to allow for a possible spin-off of Save-A-Lot into a stand-alone public company. With the recent filing, Supervalu is continuing preparations to separate Save-A-Lot, although at this time there can be no assurances that a separation or spin-off of Save-A-Lot will occur, or that any other changes in the company’s overall operations will happen.

"We believe that separating Save-A-Lot from Supervalu so that it can operate as an independent, publicly traded company is in the best interests of both Supervalu and Save-A-Lot," he said in the letter. "As two distinct publicly traded companies, each of Supervalu and Save-A-Lot will be better positioned to focus on its respective businesses, customers and strategic priorities and to capitalize on growth opportunities. After the separation, Supervalu and Save-A-Lot will each strive to be an industry leader in terms of both products and services in their respective businesses."

Duncan said after the separation Supervalu will be able to focus on providing wholesale distribution services to independent retail customers and operating its five regionally based traditional-format grocery banners. Save-A-Lot will continue to be a leader in hard discount grocery retailing in the United States.

"As of September 12, 2015, we operate 441 retail locations through our Corporate Stores business and we provide wholesale distribution to 901 stores that we license to retailers, allowing our licensees to operate under the Save-A-Lot name and providing access to our private-label brands, store programs, operating standards and supervisory support," Eric A. Claus, CEO of Save-A-Lot said in a letter to future stockholders.

Save-A-Lot's network of stores currently spans 38 states, along with the Caribbean and Central America.

"Our vision is to be the hard discount retailer of choice for value-seeking shoppers," Claus said. "Each store’s merchandising mix is tailored for local preferences through the use of demographic and ethnic specific product offerings. Our private-label program, which is a key driver of our value offering and our Save-A-Lot brand awareness, is responsible for a significant portion of our sales."