YoGo

YoGo is an Australian yoghurt-dessert brand best known for a smooth chocolate custard sold in individual yoghurt-style tubs. The product occupies a hybrid space between yoghurt and chilled dessert: its packaging and naming connect it with the yoghurt category, while its chocolate flavour and custard texture give it an indulgent, snack-oriented proposition. The brand is associated with Bega Dairy & Drinks and is sold in the Australian market. A central element of YoGo's identity has been the YoGo Gorilla, an animated advertising character used prominently in television commercials from the 1990s through the mid-2000s. The character was voiced by Paul Johnstone and became one of the most recognizable elements of the brand's advertising. Rather than relying only on product demonstrations, YoGo's communications used the gorilla as a memorable, humorous device aimed at building familiarity among families and younger consumers. The brand's history also intersects with a separate Western Australian product using the name Yogo. Brownes Dairy produced a regional chocolate yoghurt-dessert variant promoted with a purple bird and the slogan "Gimme Yogo!". This regional line had previously included strawberry, banana and creamy-rice flavours, as well as themed chocolate products such as Dirt Dessert and Double Decker variants with marshmallow toppings. The earlier flavoured and themed variants were discontinued in 2013, while strawberry and banana versions returned on 5 July 2021. Yogo Dirt Dessert was re-released in August 2024. These Brownes products are related by naming and category but are distinct from the nationally recognized YoGo product associated with Bega Dairy & Drinks. YoGo's mascot-led marketing also generated public discussion about the promotion of energy-dense or otherwise less nutritious food to children. In 2018, there were calls for the YoGo Gorilla to be removed from packaging as part of a broader push to reduce the use of child-appealing characters on products considered unhealthy. The episode illustrates the tension between the brand's long-standing family-oriented advertising assets and evolving expectations around food marketing, packaging and children's diets. Publicly available reference material identifies the product, its principal manufacturer, its signature flavour, its mascot history and selected regional product developments, but does not establish a precise founding year, founder, headquarters, standalone corporate structure or current executive roster for YoGo as a brand.

YoGo is an Australian chilled yoghurt-dessert brand centered on chocolate custard sold in a yoghurt-style tub. The brand is associated with Bega Dairy & Drinks. The available reference material does not give a precise launch year or identify a founder, so its early corporate history cannot be stated with certainty beyond its development as an Australian dairy dessert product. The product's market identity was shaped strongly by advertising. From the 1990s through the mid-2000s, commercials featured the YoGo Gorilla, voiced by Paul Johnstone. The character became a prominent part of the brand's public image and helped distinguish YoGo in the crowded chilled-snack and dessert market. The mascot gave the product a playful, character-driven personality and contributed to its recognition among Australian consumers. YoGo is also linked in reference material to a separate Western Australian Yogo line made by Brownes Dairy. Brownes' product used a similar yoghurt-dessert concept but was promoted with a purple bird and the slogan "Gimme Yogo!". It was first sold in the 1980s and 1990s under the Peters "Peters Farm" brand. Brownes' range included chocolate, strawberry, banana and creamy-rice variants, along with chocolate Dirt Dessert and Double Decker products featuring marshmallow toppings. The themed Double Decker and other listed variants were discontinued in 2013. Strawberry and banana flavours returned on 5 July 2021, and Yogo Dirt Dessert was re-released in August 2024. The brand's child-appealing marketing became a subject of criticism in 2018. Calls were made to remove the YoGo Gorilla from packaging in a broader effort to reduce the promotion of products viewed as unhealthy to children. This discussion concerned packaging and marketing practices rather than a reported product recall or finding that the product itself was unsafe. The available sources do not provide a complete chronology of ownership changes, manufacturing locations, distribution agreements, product recipes, sales performance or current advertising activity. Accordingly, YoGo's documented history is best understood through its core chocolate-custard product, its long-running gorilla mascot and the distinct regional Yogo activity associated with Brownes Dairy.

• 2024

  Brownes Yogo Dirt Dessert re-released

  [1]YoGoen.wikipedia.org

  Brownes Dairy re-released Yogo Dirt Dessert in August 2024.

• 2021

  Brownes strawberry and banana Yogo return

  [1]YoGoen.wikipedia.org

  Brownes Dairy returned strawberry and banana Yogo flavours to sale on 5 July 2021.

• 2018

  Packaging criticism involving the YoGo Gorilla

  [1]YoGoen.wikipedia.org

  Calls were made to remove the YoGo Gorilla from packaging as part of an initiative to reduce the marketing of unhealthy products to children.

• 2013

  Brownes themed Yogo variants discontinued

  [1]YoGoen.wikipedia.org

  Brownes Dairy's listed strawberry, banana, creamy-rice and themed Double Decker variants were discontinued in 2013.

• 1990

  YoGo Gorilla advertising era

  [1]YoGoen.wikipedia.org

  The YoGo Gorilla became a prominent advertising character during the 1990s and continued to feature prominently through the mid-2000s. The character was voiced by Paul Johnstone.

• YoGo becomes established as an Australian chocolate-custard dessert

  [1]YoGoen.wikipedia.org

  YoGo is documented as an Australian yoghurt dessert snack made by Bega Dairy & Drinks and sold in a tub containing chocolate custard.

A familiar Australian chilled dessert combining yoghurt-style presentation with indulgent chocolate custard, supported historically by distinctive character-based advertising.

• Chilled yoghurt dessert

  YoGo chocolate custard

  The core YoGo product is an Australian yoghurt-dessert snack presented in a yoghurt-style tub and filled with chocolate custard. Its proposition combines the familiarity of a dairy snack format with the richer taste and texture of a chocolate dessert. The product is associated with Bega Dairy & Drinks and is the principal offering represented by the YoGo brand.

• Regional yoghurt dessert

  Brownes Yogo range

  Brownes Dairy's Western Australian Yogo is a distinct but similarly named yoghurt-dessert product. Its documented range has included chocolate, strawberry, banana and creamy-rice flavours, plus Dirt Dessert and Double Decker variants with marshmallow toppings. Earlier themed variants were discontinued in 2013; strawberry and banana returned in 2021, and Dirt Dessert returned in 2024.

• 1990YoGo Gorilla advertising

  Australia

  YoGo used the YoGo Gorilla as a recurring advertising character in commercials from the 1990s through the mid-2000s. Voiced by Paul Johnstone, the mascot supplied a humorous and memorable identity for the chocolate-custard product.

  Outcome. The character became strongly associated with YoGo and remained one of the brand's most recognizable marketing assets.

  Source
• Brownes Yogo purple bird campaign

  Western Australia

  Brownes Dairy promoted its separately produced Yogo variant through a purple-bird character and the slogan "Gimme Yogo!".

  Outcome. The campaign distinguished Brownes' regional Yogo from the better-known YoGo Gorilla identity.

  Source

• 2024

  Brownes Yogo Dirt Dessert re-releaseProduct launch

  Background

  Yogo Dirt Dessert had previously been part of Brownes Dairy's discontinued themed product range.

  Action taken

  Brownes Dairy re-released Yogo Dirt Dessert in August 2024.

  Aftermath

  The re-release revived a named variant from the regional Yogo portfolio.

  Source

• 2021

  Return of Brownes Yogo strawberry and banana flavoursProduct launch

  Background

  Brownes Dairy had previously discontinued several Yogo flavours and themed variants.

  Action taken

  Strawberry and banana Yogo flavours returned to sale on 5 July 2021.

  Aftermath

  The return expanded the available Brownes Yogo range beyond its documented chocolate offering.

  Source

• 2018

  Debate over the YoGo Gorilla's use on packagingStrategy

  Background

  Advocates argued that child-appealing characters should not be used to promote products considered unhealthy for children.

  Action taken

  Calls were made for the YoGo Gorilla to be removed from YoGo packaging.

  Aftermath

  The episode placed YoGo's long-standing mascot-based marketing within wider public debate about children's food advertising and packaging.

  Source

• Unconfirmed

  LAUGFS Gas partners with YOGO for deliveries[2]LAUGFS Gas与YOGO合作提供配送ft.lk

  Reported: 2020-06-20

  LAUGFS Gas partnered with YOGO to support gas deliveries and refills, expanding the reach of its delivery network in Sri Lanka.

1. 1YoGoen.wikipedia.org
2. 2LAUGFS Gas与YOGO合作提供配送ft.lk