2024 State of the Dairy Industry: Ice Cream

Partly Sunny Forecast: Ice cream and sherbet continue to shine, with frozen novelties and desserts seeing cloudier skies.

ice cream variety — *Credit: jenifoto / iStock / Getty Images Plus*

Last year in this feature, we stated ice cream and frozen novelties would have a difficult time matching a “Super Bowl champion”-level performance put forth by the Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes, which occurred for ice cream during the COVID-19 pandemic when consumers sought a home indulgence. This year, we can say the same thing. Mahomes won another Super Bowl in February, with the Chiefs currently seeking a “three-peat.”

However, getting back to this year’s theme, the ice cream/frozen novelties category continues to see partly sunny skies.

Overall, ice cream/sherbet sales rose by 3% year over (YoY) to $8.6 billion for the 52 weeks ending Aug. 11, according to Chicago-based market research firm Circana. Unit sales picked up 0.5% YoY to 1.84 billion.

Frozen novelty sales ticked slightly higher by 1% YoY to $8.74 billion, while unit sales for the period ending Aug. 11 declined by a small 0.2% to 1.86 billion.

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Brian Berk has been a writer and editor for 21 years. He has served as editor-in-chief of the Music & Sound Retailer and managing editor of Convenience Store News, both the top-circulated magazines in their respective fields. Berk has also held editing and writing roles in drug store retail, photography, and natural health products. Holding a bachelor’s degree from SUNY Cortland and a master’s degree from Quinnipiac University, Berk lives in Port Washington, N.Y., with his wife and two children.