Is Ice Cream Stepping Out Of Its Consolation Zone?

Who desires ice cream? Properly, if we have a look at world ice cream consumption, the reply is: virtually everybody! In keeping with Mintel’s shopper analysis, 9 in ten UK customers loved an ice cream between July and October 2023, and an virtually an identical quantity was seen in Germany. Frozen treats are additionally omnipresent in freezers throughout the pond, with over 94% of US adults buying ice cream, frozen novelties or frozen yogurt in 2023.

It’s clear that ice cream stays as common as ever, and the worldwide ice cream trade is in good well being. Ice cream remains to be loved primarily as a consolation meals for a lot of customers. Within the US, round 9 in ten ice cream customers agree that consuming ice cream brings pleasure after they want a pickup, highlighting the product’s well-established position as an ‘emotional help meals’ for customers. Nonetheless, shopper calls for are altering: customers’ elevated deal with wholesome consuming has led to extra scrutiny of meals with historically excessive sugar and fats content material. Equally within the APAC area, there may be a requirement for better-for-you substances and formulations. Naturally, it’s important that ice cream manufacturers reply to shopper demand to keep away from customers turning elsewhere for a candy deal with. On this article, we study the ice cream shopper tendencies shaping the trade, and the way manufacturers are responding with ice cream innovation.

Consolation meals is a meals that buyers flip to in instances of stress that gives a way of emotional well being and wellbeing. Sometimes, consolation meals are excessive in fats or sugar, energy-dense, and should have comparatively low dietary worth. Widespread consolation meals embody crisps, chocolate, and naturally, ice cream.

The previous few years have been a boon for common consolation meals, with customers experiencing the heightened stress and anxiousness of the COVID-19 pandemic, after which adopted by ongoing financial crises. The ice cream trade was significantly well-placed to learn from rising costs and excessive inflation as a result of lipstick impact. Ice cream’s positioning as an inexpensive deal with appeals to customers throughout instances of financial disaster.

Nonetheless, because the pandemic, Mintel has discovered there was a world shift in direction of extra health-conscious consuming. Ice cream manufacturers have subsequently discovered themselves in a little bit of a quandary. Do they take inspiration from the plant-based trade, embrace dairy options, and deal with making a more healthy various to historically indulgent ice cream? Or do they dial up the indulgence, and closely lean into the consolation meals repute? The reply isn’t a easy one. Mintel’s shopper analysis has discovered that it’s unlikely that ice cream might ever set up itself as a very wholesome meals, even amongst customers who’re actively searching for wholesome ice cream: 1 / 4 of Indian customers who’re keen to pay extra for more healthy ice cream imagine that ice cream can by no means be wholesome. In consequence, ice cream wants to supply permissible indulgence to customers, hanging a stability between well being and indulgence. 

Whereas diet shouldn’t be a prime precedence when shopping for ice lotions, virtually 1 / 4 of US customers are enthusiastic about ice cream with useful well being advantages. Manufacturers are effectively positioned to develop ice cream’s repute as a useful meals by focusing on younger customers who’re eager on excessive protein merchandise, or take inspiration from the booming vitality drinks sector, and supply a a lot sought-after vitality kick to customers. Though the useful ice cream market stays fairly small, it’s rising. Mintel’s GNPD information exhibits that ice cream product launches with useful claims elevated by 10% between 2021-2023, highlighting that it’s one thing manufacturers ought to be contemplating on the subject of new product growth.

Purposeful substances and added well being advantages should not the one new options drawing vital shopper curiosity within the world ice cream trade. Customers are getting extra adventurous, at the least on the subject of new flavours and textures. Mintel has discovered that there’s a rising curiosity in unconventional ice cream flavours.

Within the APAC area, floral flavours have been gaining curiosity, and half of Thai customers aged 25-34 are enthusiastic about attempting these flavours. Curiosity can also be rising in different non-traditional flavour profiles, corresponding to savoury, which, in line with Mintel’s GNPD information, has seen a rise of over 50% in new product launches since 2021. Nonetheless, regardless of this rising curiosity, non-traditional flavours stay fairly area of interest. As demonstrated within the graph beneath, floral and savoury flavours have been every solely represented in and fewer than 1% of all world ice cream product launches in 2023. Nonetheless, manufacturers shouldn’t low cost shopper curiosity in flavour experimentation, and within the coming years ought to utilise AI to create new and customised style experiences for customers.

Regardless of the rising want for novelty, customers proceed to take pleasure in conventional ice cream flavours, corresponding to strawberry, vanilla and chocolate. Nearly two-thirds of UK adults agree that there ought to be extra high-quality ice cream in basic flavours. This curiosity in larger high quality basic flavours illustrates how customers need the consolation of familiarity but additionally need enhancements to style and texture high quality on the identical time. Ice cream manufacturers also needs to innovate by placing a twist on acquainted flavours to maintain customers engaged. This may be achieved by embracing an previous pal: nostalgia.

If you need to study extra in regards to the newest trending flavours within the ice cream trade, strive Mintel’s Flavourscape AI.

Nostalgia is considerably influencing the worldwide ice cream trade; customers throughout numerous areas are drawn to flavours and types that remind them of their childhood or previous. Within the UK, consuming ice lotions that evoke childhood recollections resonates broadly with customers, significantly these beneath 35, suggesting that advertising centered on nostalgia could be extremely efficient on this market. But it surely’s not simply customers within the UK who’re trying again to the ‘good previous days’. In India, ice cream manufacturers are connecting with customers by means of nostalgic flavours, significantly focusing on older Millennials with seasonal fruit flavours, and in Germany, eight in 10 customers say that they take pleasure in rediscovering flavours that they grew up with, echoing the will for extra ice cream in basic and nostalgic flavours.

This all highlights that manufacturers ought to severely contemplate nostalgia as a advertising technique. Providing inspiration for tapping into the attraction of nostalgia, a variety of UK retro manufacturers expanded into the ice cream class in 2023, corresponding to Barratt’s sweets, Angel Delight and Wrigley’s Hubba Bubba. In the meantime, established manufacturers and market leaders have additionally used nostalgia of their advertising campaigns: Ben & Jerry’s has featured retro merchandise alongside their ice cream of their social media campaigns, and Baskin-Robbins reverted to utilizing colors from their unique emblem of their 2022 rebrand.

If you need to study extra about nostalgia as a advertising technique, check out Mintel’s extremely informative Nostalgia Advertising Highlight Article.

Ice cream will all the time be a consolation meals. It’s unlikely that buyers will cease turning to their favorite indulgent frozen deal with in instances of uncertainty within the close to future. Nonetheless, how the idea of ‘consolation’ resonates with customers is altering, and ice cream manufacturers should be acutely aware of various shopper expectations when contemplating new product growth and advertising campaigns. Some customers wish to be reassured that they don’t seem to be damaging their well being, and even bettering it, when consuming ice cream. Some wish to expertise one thing new, and get a small portion of pleasure by means of a novel flavour. Or some simply wish to really feel the nice and cozy embrace of nostalgia, and it gained’t even soften their ice cream.

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Mintel is consistently monitoring innovation, figuring out tendencies and gaining insights. To study extra in regards to the newest product improvements within the foods and drinks trade, obtain Mintel’s Most Modern 2024 report right this moment.