![[Dippin' Dots peppermint with Oreo falor ice cream. The once hugely popular ice cream of the future has fallen on hard times.] *** []](/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/20111104__20111105_B07_BZ05DIPPINSHELFp1.jpg?w=486 "20111104__20111105_B07_BZ05DIPPINSHELF~p1.JPG")
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Once the self- proclaimed “Ice Cream of the Future,” Dippin’ Dots is seeking federal bankruptcy protection, a move the company said is aimed at staving off foreclosure on more than $11 million in loans.
The Paducah, Ky.-based company filed for Chapter 11 reorganization Thursday night, asking U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas H. Fulton to allow it to use cash collateral to continue operations while the case plays out. The company said in a filing that allowing it to use the cash collateral and stay functioning will not harm creditors, including its largest single creditor, Regions Bank, which is owed $11.1 million.
Curt Jones, a microbiology graduate of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale who now lives in Nashville, Tenn., created the ice-cream beads in 1988. After having to sell a car and raid savings to keep going, he grew the business to nearly 2,000 locations across the country, including kiosks at malls, amusement parks and stadiums. The ice cream is stored at 40 degrees below zero and sold at 20 below zero. The Associated Press
