Pillsbury, You Big Bully!

Say what?!

Group can't use the term 'bake off'Updated: 12/7/2007 9:04 PMBy: Katie Morse

POTSDAM, N.Y. -- For the past nine years, the Potsdam Food Co-op has held an annual "Holiday Bake Off" benefiting the local neighborhood center. But the Co-op recently received a letter from General Mills, which said Pillsbury patented the phrase bake-off, and they couldn't use it. So they called General Mills.

"By the end of the conversation, I was pretty amused. They're very serious about the term bake-off, and to me it seems rather petty," said Scott Miller, the Potsdam Food Co-op General Manager.

Miller said he told General Mills the bake-off was for charity, but still couldn't use the phrase.

Holiday Bake OffFor the past nine years, the Potsdam Food Co-op has held an annual "Holiday Bake Off" benefiting the local neighborhood center.

"have this multi-national corporation that is taking on little Potsdam Food Co-op and bullying us around, telling us not to use two little words for a charitable organization during the holiday season. It's simply ludicrous," said Miller.

"It's not like we're making any money. This is for charity in a place that really needs it. And it's very upsetting. And all the people I've talked to can't believe it," said Kimberly Sherman, who is baking the contest.

With not much advanced notice that they'd have to change the name, the people here at the Co-op decided to call the event a baking contest for this year, but next year, they're promising to be a little bit more creative.

"I'm also taking suggestions from all of our customers and visitors to the bake-off on Sunday as to what we may want to change the name to, and I have a very wonderful suggestion box," said Miller.

The suggestion box is in the shape of the Pillsbury Dough-Boy.
"That a company that large can't allow something that is this good and beneficial for the community to occur, I can't believe that," said Sherman.

The Co-op is hoping that they'll not only raise money, but plenty of name suggestions in their dough-boy.

The baking contest will still be held at the Co-op on Sunday. Anyone can participate, all you have to do is bring two desserts, one for people to taste, and one for people to bid on.