HONOLULU — Hawaii chain Zippy’s Restaurants signed a deal to continue serving Dave’s Ice Cream in all of its 24 locations, officials said.
Zippy’s said the contract with Honolulu-based Dave’s takes effect immediately, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Wednesday.
The arrangement will result in annual servings of at least 23,500 gallons (88,957 liters) of vanilla and 16,000 gallons (60,567 liters) of chocolate ice cream from Dave’s as dessert and in milk shakes, Zippy’s said.
The bankruptcy last month of national food and beverage firm Dean Foods caused concern at Dave’s, owner Dave Leong said.
The 37-year-old company in Honolulu’s Pearl City area distributed its desserts under a wholesale arrangement with Dallas-based Dean Foods subsidiary Meadow Gold Dairies-Hawaii.
Meadow Gold plans to supply its Hawaii customers from a Utah plant beginning next month and the change cut off a third of Dave’s business, amounting to more than $1 million annually, Leong previously said.
The ice cream is also sold in Hawaii restaurants Teddy’s Bigger Burgers and Big City Diner, and supermarkets that sell pints of Dave’s.
Leong expressed gratitude for the support from Zippy’s.
“I’m just trying to keep my staff employed during the holidays, and as long as I have a few more local companies like Zippy’s to jump on board, my 20 employees will continue to have jobs,” Leong said in a statement. “I can’t thank Zippy’s enough for their help and association.”
The restaurant’s parent company, FCH Enterprises, is committed to supporting local product suppliers, President Paul Yokota said.
“Buying ice cream, or any other local product, from small local producers presents the risk of continuity of supply, but we urge other local companies to look at local producers, especially when the product is as high of a quality as Dave’s,” Yokota said in a statement.
“We believe that local companies need to support each other. It’s good for jobs, for the economy, and for our shared food security,” Yokota said.
