Ice cream is the most popular dessert in the world today. Since the first ice cream parlours opened and ice cream began to be industrially produced at the start of the 20th century, ice cream consumption has risen rapidly. In addition, ice cream is now a product which is sold and enjoyed all year round.

Today, the most popular varieties undoubtedly include vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry. But this doesn't stop consumers from being very open to trying new things, or being constantly interested in new and interesting flavours. 

The world of fruits is always opening new flavour variations. These include, for example, local fruits such as peach and raspberry, and exotic fruits such as pineapple, mango, and passion fruit. The new superfruits such as goji, açaí, acerola, and pomegranate also offer completely new taste sensations.

Smoothie ice cream can contain 30% fruit and, in addition to fruity enjoyment, gives consumers the feeling of doing something that's good for themselves and their health. 

As well, many consumers don't want to miss out on a little cool refreshment, even though they want to maintain a healthy and calorie-conscious diet. This is why there is also an increasing demand from consumers for light ice creams. Fewer calories, without comprising flavour or mouth feel. One way of making this possible is by using innovative sweetening systems such as MultiSweet Plus® from Döhler, which has a remarkable resemblance to sugar in its taste profile. In addition, many new and light ice cream varieties are being created using yoghurt.

Children are another important target group for ice cream. If you want to appeal to children in particular, child-friendly shapes and packaging is not enough. Sensory tests have shown that the flavour preferences of these little consumers are often very different, which means that they need their own flavour profile.