So we’re clearly a nation of ice cream lovers. But you are probably wondering why on earth we’re even thinking about ice cream when it’s still pretty cold outside…
Well ice cream is not just for summer – it’s all year round in our eyes! With such exciting flavours and fun serving formats emerging, we couldn’t resist giving you our top trends to consider for 2022.
1. Plant power
Non-dairy ice cream choices made up 14% of new product launches in the UK ice cream market last year and we’re not surprised.
As the development of protein and milk alternatives improve, plant based ice creams are really progressing in terms of quality, taste and flavour. Long gone are the days of only being able to offer a sorbet to consumers looking for vegan options.
2. Nostalgic flavours
The resurgence of nostalgia has been on the rise across all food and beverage categories, especially as consumers look for comforting foods and flavours during the pandemic.
And we all know ice cream is one of the ultimate comfort foods, right?
Take your customers back in time with a spoonful of ice cream with flavours like rhubarb & custard, raspberry ripple or bubblegum.
3. Loaded indulgence
This is most certainly an effect of American-style dessert parlours popping up throughout the UK… think stacked up pancakes, fluffy waffles and gooey cookie dough all topped with one thing: a scoop of delicious ice cream.
It’s all about eating with your eyes here, and the more the merrier when it comes to toppings. Take inspiration from these places and add some loaded indulgence to your menus for 2022.
4. Ice cream sandwiches gone wild…
Ice cream sandwiches have been around for a couple of years starting with amazing ice cream between two glorious cookies.
But we have started to see some really incredible evolution of the ice cream sandwich flooding social mediausing doughnuts, croissants and even brioche burger buns as the “sandwich bread”.
Yes we are confirming ice cream burgers are a thing and putting them in our top trends for ice cream in 2022… I am just surprised these weren’t a thing sooner!.
So there you have it, those were our top ice cream trends for 2022!
If you want to discover even more trends, our new flavours launching in 2022 and some great recipe ideas, check out our new ice cream guide here .
*CEO – Ice Cream in the UK