Ice cream is truly one of life’s great pleasures, enjoyed by young and old, those who are healthy and those who are ill, and people of virtually every culture, in all parts of the country, at all times of the year. Companies compete to create the lowest fat and highest fat versions of it, and it is so important to so many that consumers who cannot consume dairy products demand it in non-dairy form. But it is also a very mature category that has been on grocer’s shelves since grocery stores came into existence.

Ice cream is truly one of life’s great pleasures, enjoyed by young and old, those who are healthy and those who are ill, and people of virtually every culture, in all parts of the country, at all times of the year. Companies compete to create the lowest fat and highest fat versions of it, and it is so important to so many that consumers who cannot consume dairy products demand it in non-dairy form. But it is also a very mature category that has been on grocer’s shelves since grocery stores came into existence.

Between 2003 and 2008, the ice cream and frozen novelties market grew by more than 16%, from $10.4 billion to $12.1 billion. Yet, a good deal of that growth happened prior to 2005. Since 2005, growth has slowed and certain segments of the market have begun to decline, while others continue to grow rapidly.

Mintel’s review of the ice cream and frozen novelty market provides a fresh perspective on the market as it provides:

A thorough analysis of the factors that define successful brands in the category and a clear path to help less successful players improve their performance

Deep profiles of consumer behavior in the category, with a clear read on consumer sentiment regarding the most recent innovations seen in the category

Innovative ideas for improvement for players in any segment of the market

A definitive read on the factors that have contributed to category growth