Highlights:
- Consumers' sense of adventure is driving ice cream brands to expand their flavor options.
- New types of ice cream, such as keto-friendly and plant-based, are growing to meet specific dietary needs.
Celebrate National Ice Cream Day with New Flavors and Bases
This July 17, celebrate National Ice Cream Day by cooling off with a refreshing frozen treat and catching up on the latest ice cream trends.
5 Ice Cream Trends You Should Know
Ice cream innovations are going strong as manufacturers seek out new ways to connect with consumers. Key strategies include new flavors and bases, which allow brands to meet consumers’ interests in adventure, indulgence, nostalgia, and even health. Here’s a look at five ice cream trends to know:
1. Savory Flavors
Savory flavors are making their way into the ice cream section thanks to products like Van Leeuwen’s Kraft Macaroni & Cheese Ice Cream. Made with real cheese powder and turmeric for a yellow color, this cheesy ice cream offers consumers a bold, new way to experience a familiar flavor. Tyra Banks’ new SMiZE Cream line also features a savory option with its Chocolate BBQ Ice Cream.
2. Plant-Based Expansion
The plant-based ice cream trend continues to grow, with oat, coconut, and almond milk as some of the most popular bases. Now, be on the lookout for hemp—the featured ingredient in Wonderlab’s Doozy Pots Plant-Based Gelato. New formats for plant-based ice cream are also on the rise and include Unilever’s Magnum Mini Non-Dairy bars variety pack for a more snackable option.
3. Breakfast Flavors
Milk Bar’s famous Cereal Milk Ice Cream is now available in supermarkets and offers the nostalgic taste of cereal milk with a cornflake crunch. Post is also getting in on the action with the launch of its Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles Light Ice Creams in celebration of Pebbles’ 50th birthday. Another breakfast-flavored inspiration to watch is Jeni’s Everything Bagel Ice Cream, which features a cream cheese base along with garlic, onion, sesame seeds, and poppy seeds.
4. Keto-Friendly
Frozen treats that support the keto diet are also gaining traction. One example is Mammoth Creameries’ Keto Frozen Custard line, which uses a base made from grass-fed butter, egg yolks, and heavy cream. Recently launched flavors include Butter Coffee, which boasts only 3 grams of net carbs per serving, and Butter Pecan, with only 2 grams.
5. Spirits-Infused
Häagen-Dazs has taken premium indulgence to the next level with The Spirits Collection—a line of ice creams infused with real alcohol. These decadent creations include Irish Cream Brownie and Bourbon Praline Pecan Ice Creams, as well as Rum Tres Leches—a Latin American inspiration featuring rum with dulce de leche and pieces of tres leches cake.
Make Something Delicious with Glanbia
Whether it’s a creative new flavor or a base that’s healthier or more sustainable, Glanbia Nutritionals has the ingredients you need to make ice cream that excites today’s consumers. See what our dairy proteins, plant-based ingredients such as oat, chia, and flaxseed, and flavor solutions can do for you.
Contact us to get started today!