Vegan strawberry soft-serve ice cream is coming to IKEA. The pink, dairy-free frozen treat will be available at IKEA Bistro menus across Europe starting next month.
The new vegan treat is fruit-based, made from strawberry puree. According to IKEA, it has half the carbon footprint of dairy ice cream. The prototype was well-received in summer 2018 at the Democratic Design Days in Älmhult and the HAVEN festival in Copenhagen.
“In the past month we have been working closely with our supplier to find both the right taste and the prefect texture for this new soft ice,” says Sandra Lindh, commercial manager at IKEA food services AB. “Our ambition was to create a plant-based treat that is as soft, airy and delicious as our popular dairy-based soft ice. It’s an easy, affordable and delicious treat for customers that either need or want to skip dairy products and prefer plant-based food options.”
IKEA first announced its intention to launch vegan soft-serve ice cream in time for summer 2019 last June. “We’re working closely with different suppliers to find the right taste and texture and are currently exploring three different alternatives, either based on oats, soy or fruits,” Gerry Dufresne, the Range Manager at IKEA Food Services, told Vegan Food and Living at the time.
While IKEA settled on fruit for its first dairy-free soft-serve, the Sweden-based company will continue to develop soy and oat-based vegan ice cream. Last August, it replaced the dairy vanilla ice cream at IKEA Malaysia with a soy-based vegan version, citing its move toward creating a “more sustainable environment.”
As with the vegan ice cream, many of IKEA’s food-related decisions have been made in the name of sustainability; a reflection of the company’s ethos. It launched vegan caviar last month made from sustainable seaweed. IKEA’s vegan hot dog, first announced in February 2018 as part of the brand’s “responsibility to serve food that is good for people and the planet,” became a hit with customers. In response to demand, IKEA launched 10-packs of the veggie dog in Europe this month.
IKEA will launch its vegan strawberry soft-serve ice cream at IKEA Bistros in Europe next month with the intention of a global launch catered to regional taste buds.
