As 2014 comes to a close, we’ve put together our annual review of notable frozen yogurt news and events. With slowing frozen yogurt sales in the US, frozen yogurt franchises are looking to international locations for growth. Frozen yogurt’s popularity continues to grow internationally as new stores and froyo trucks continue to open. International frozen yogurt flavors inspired new flavors from TCBY (World of Fro-yo) and Yogurtland (Flavor Quest). Forever Yogurt created a new flavor for their Indian market, Gulab Jamun and Wakaberry created two flavors for South Africa’s Heritage Day.
Here are other notable froyo events that occurred in 2014:
National Frozen Yoghurt Day Declared in South Africa. National Frozen Yogurt Day is celebrated in several countries. Wakaberry declared the first National Frozen Yoghurt Day in South Africa, July 26. To mark the special occasion they introduced two new flavors and handed out limited edition NFYD Wakaberry spoons.
Revel’s Swirl of Excellence Awarded at the NRA Show. Revel Systems sponsored the inaugural Swirl of Excellence frozen yogurt competition at the NRA Show, the largest tradeshow for the foodservice industry. The Swirl of Excellence was presented to the frozen yogurt mix vendor with the highest score based on the ratings of frozen yogurt experts. Montebianco took home the froyo trophy.
Put Your Best Cup Forward Design Contest. IFYA and CarryOutSupplies.com sponsored the first yogurt cup design contest to recognize frozen yogurt shops for their attractive frozen yogurt cups. The grand prize winner of Put Your Best Cup Forward, the first froyo cup design contest, was the Color Prism cup, submitted by Ahmad Yilmaz, co-founder and Creative Director of Forever Yogurt.
Creative Froyo Flavor Awards Contest. IFYA partnered with FrozenDessertSupplies.com to sponsor the first Creative Froyo Flavor Awards contest to find the best creative froyo flavors. Experts and fans selected the most creative flavors. The grand prize winner was “strawberries & cream” from Yotopia of Iowa City, IA.
Swirl of Honor Program Expansion. The Swirl of Honor, the first quality seal program for frozen yogurt shops, added Swirl of Honor member shops in Namibia, South Africa, UK and US (Washington, Pennsylvannia, Ohio, New Jersey). Congratulations to our new Swirl of Honor shops. Members have demonstrated their commitment to frozen yogurt excellence.
Fans Vote on Fave Flavors. The IFYA wasn’t the only one to ask fans to vote for their favorite flavors. Yogurtland announced the winners of the 1st Fan Choice Awards in January and collected votes for the next Fan Choice Awards. Orange Leaf capped off its “Year of Flavor” with a fan poll to determine the favorite flavor.
Interesting Froyo Inventions. Dial introduced a frozen yogurt scented body wash with a cooling effect. Stonyfield partnered with WikiFoods to launch Stonyfield Pearls, which feature edible shells made of organic fruit.
Free Ad Supported Cups and Dividers. CarryOutSupplies.com is seeking to revolutionize the froyo world by launching free ad supported yogurt cups and dividers.
Cookie Dividers Go National. Yogurtland expanded the availability of their cookie dividers and added a new chocolate cookie flavor.
Straus Discontinues Organic Frozen Yogurt Mix. The year started off with some very sad news; Straus discontinued its organic frozen yogurt mix. Tragic.
Froyo Spoons. Do you love froyo spoons? Froyo spoon collectors should have added the following collectible froyo spoons to their collection:
- Yogurtland’s color changing pink and green spoons, distributed on National Frozen Yogurt Day
- Yogurtland’s giant green and pink yogurt spoons
- Menchie’s red holiday “gift” spoon
- Menchie’s Kiwi spoon
- Yogurtland Ultimate Summer glitter spoons in silver, blue, purple, green and red
- Wakaberry’s NFYD spoon
- Forever Yogurt’s Froid & Frida robot spoons
Frozen Yogurt in the News. Notable froyo promotions, events and milestones included:
- January 6: Yogurtland’s Fan Choice Awards begin
- January 21: Menchie’s opens its first self serve froyo truck in Houston
- January 29: Yogurtland opens first store in the Middle East
- February 6: National Frozen Yogurt Day
- February 20: U-Swirl acquires Fuzzy Peach Frozen Yogurt
- March 3: Yogurtland 2nd Annual Flavor Quest launches
- March 19: Menchie’s opens first location in China
- March 25: Famous Brands acquires majority stake in Wakaberry
- April 30: Menchie’s opens 400th store
- May 28: TCBY launches World of Fro-yo with international froyo flavors
- June 16: Red Mango opens 300th location
- July 1: Gulf selects Yumz as its preferred vendor
- July 7: Yogurtland launches Ultimate Summer promotion
- July 8: Orange Leaf introduces self-serve smoothies
- July 9: TCBY launches Angry Birds promotion
- July 17: Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt opens first froyo truck
- July 20: Pinkberry debuts in Japan
- July 22: Yogurtland opens 300th store
- September 5: Kevin Durant announces partnership with Orange Leaf Frozen Yogurt
- November 10: Walking in a Winter Yogurtland promotion launches
- December 2: Yogen Fruz arrives in Spain and South Korea
- December 15: Yogurtland opens first location in Thailand
We will continue to follow frozen yogurt news in 2015. To keep up with froyo industry news, visit our Press Room and subscribe to our free monthly enewsletter.
