CoolBrands buys Godiva and Haagen Dazs brands

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Jul 8, 2003 | by Associated Press

MARKHAM, Ontario -- CoolBrands International Inc. said Monday it agreed to acquire some brands and distribution assets from Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream Inc. and Nestle SA for about $10 million.

Under the agreement, CoolBrands acquired Dreyer's premium Dreamery and Godiva labels, the Whole Fruit sorbet brand, and Nestle's U.S. rights to the Haagen Dazs brand. Markham-based CoolBrands markets ice cream and frozen desserts.

The sale comes a week after Swiss food giant Nestle closed its $2.8 billion acquisition of Dreyer's Grand Ice Cream.

To satisfy regulators, Nestle and Oakland, Calif.-based Dreyer's agreed to sell some ice cream brands.

Nestle and Dreyer's -- along with Unilever, the marketer of Ben & Jerry's brand ice cream -- account for about 98 percent of "superpremium" ice cream sales in the United States.