Ultima Foods

Ultima Foods
Founded 1993
Headquarters Saint-Hubert, Longueuil, Quebec, Canada
Brands Iögo
Olympic Dairy
Revenue CA$ 300 million (approx.)[1] (2017)
Number of employees
 660[1] (2017)
Website ultimayog.ca

Ultima Foods Inc. is a Canadian manufacturer and marketer of yogurt and fresh dairy products. Founded in 1993 (with predecessor operations dating to 1971), Ultima Foods is owned by Quebec-based dairy company Agropur. In 2017, the company had 660 employees across the country and annual sales in excess of CA$ 300 million.[1]

The company launched the iögo brand of yogurt and fresh dairy products in Canada in mid-August 2012,[2][3] and also owns and operates the Olympic brand of dairy products. Ultima Foods also continues to manufacture (but no longer directly sells) Yoplait-branded products in Canada.

History

In 1971, the Quebec-based Coopérative agricole de Granby (renamed Agropur in 1979)[4] obtained the Canadian licence to manufacture and market Yoplait products.[5] In 1993, Agropur's yogurt manufacturing and marketing operations were combined with those of Agrifoods, a federal cooperative owned by 2,500 dairy producers in Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan, forming Ultima Foods.

In 2004, Ultima Foods acquired Olympic Dairy, a manufacturer of premium natural cultured dairy, organic and soy products. For over 30 years, Olympic has produced over 140 different products in a variety of sizes and flavours.[5]

On May 8, 2012, Ultima and Yoplait announced they were restructuring their relationship. As of September 1, 2012, General Mills (the brand's longtime United States licensee, and since 2011 a 50% shareholder in the international Yoplait brand) has taken over as the Canadian licensee of the Yoplait brand. Ultima continues to produce Yoplait-branded products at its Granby, Quebec plant, but these products are now marketed and sold by General Mills.[6]

Simultaneously, Ultima Foods announced plans to begin producing and marketing its own brand of yogurt and fresh dairy products in Canada, starting in mid-August 2012, later revealed to be iögo (pronounced "yo-go").[2] The new product line is, according to Ultima, "entirely created and manufactured in Canada and [includes] a full and original line of products and flavours that suit the tastes of Canadian consumers."[7]

On August 31, 2017, Agropur and Agrifoods announced that they had concluded an agreement pursuant to which Agropur would become the sole owner of Ultima Foods, subject to regulatory approval.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Agropur (2017-08-31). "Agropur Acquires Agrifoods' Interest in Ultima Foods". Retrieved 2017-09-02.
  2. 1 2 "Canadian Trade-mark Data: Application no. 1582273". Canadian Trade-marks Database. Canadian Intellectual Property Office. Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  3. ↑ Ultima Foods. "Company Profile" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  4. ↑ Agropur. "The logo's history". Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  5. 1 2 Ultima Foods. "Our Story: Since 1971". Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  6. ↑ Yoplait SAS (2012-05-08). "Ultima and Yoplait resolve issues, successfully reach agreement". Retrieved 2012-08-11.
  7. ↑ Ultima Foods (2012-05-08). "Ultima Foods launches its own brand of yogurt in Canada and reaches an agreement with Yoplait" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-08-11.
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