Dessert wars break out

Asian dessert wars have broken out in Los Angeles. The latest food fad in West Hollywood is Korean frozen yogurt. People have been queuing for up to an hour to buy the stuff, available in plain or green tea flavours, from a store called Pinkberry. 
            But Korean company Red Mango has cried foul, claiming that they started a chain of yogurt stores in Seoul in 2003. The name, the menu and even the design of the two chains are very similar. They sell the same products in cafes with similar Asian pop aesthetic: plastic seating in bright colours with menus written on glass walls. Now Red Mango is opening stores in the United States so consumers have a choice of outlets.
           Why such a fuss about this east-west dessert? Unlike American “froyo” (the heavy ice-cream-like frozen yogurt of the past), the Korean stuff is light, retains an addictive, yogurt-y sourness, is served with chunks of fresh fruit, and is relatively low in calories. Who would have thought that a dairy dessert sensation would come from Asia, a place where people were until recently intolerant to lactose?