Last year’s hot summer boosted the performance of the ice cream market, which rose 12.8% to £1.1bn.

From June to September, we saw 118.4 more million ice cream consumption moments, a rise of 21.2%. This was driven largely by kids, who accounted for an additional 28.4 million occasions, while an extra 22.7 million came from adults aged 45 to 54.

There was a slight bias towards handheld formats, which saw an extra 76.9 million consumption occasions over this period.

Snacking is a driving force behind growth, accounting for 68.3 million more ice cream occasions.

Within handheld, kids’ ice cream has seen the strongest value growth of 20%. The introduction of brands carrying a price premium, such as Ms Molly’s and Paw Patrol, helped to add value.

Adult ice lollies were also bought by more households. Del Monte and Solero were two key drivers of growth, contributing 12% and 8% respectively. Aldi’s new own label entrants also reached just over 800,000 shoppers.

Isabel Zakers,
Kantar Worldpanel

The top 10 brands added more than £112.6m to their sales thanks to the long hot summer. Leading brand Magnum, which accounted for £36.6m of that sum, was one of the biggest winners, along with private label handheld multipacks.

Excluding low-calorie, the tub format is in decline as shoppers switched to handheld ice creams during the hotter summer months.

One of the largest casualties was Ben & Jerry’s, the only top 10 brand in decline, with 2% shaved off its value as a result of reduced promotions. Meanwhile, rival Häagen-Dazs managed to maintain promotions, contributing to its value growth of 20.7% or £13.9m. However, Ben & Jerry’s did see some growth in its dairy-free and Moophoria offerings.

The low-calorie segment continues to be one to watch with sales up £30m as brands disrupt the freezer aisle with permissible indulgence and reduced-calorie options that clearly state the calories per tub on front of pack. Lots of brands are joining in on this trend, entering the better-for-you market with new products featuring low-calorie claims.

One of the key players in the low-calorie segment is Halo Top, which is now the ninth-biggest brand after launching last year. The first nine months of trading from launch were exclusive to Tesco, so the brand is likely to continue to work its way up the ranks in year two.

Holly Lyford, 
Nielsen