Halo Top is making the biggest modify to the recipe of its low-calorie ice cream in its history as the pioneering amend-for-you brand in the category works to regain its basis amidst a sharp reject in sales.

The frozen offering is switching to ultra-filtered milk with full-bodied protein to create a creamier texture while maintaining the same gustation and low calorie and saccharide attributes that thrust it into prominence and helped it wrestle away market share from industry stalwarts such as Breyers and Ben & Jerry'southward. Previously, Halo Top used skim milk and added in the protein solids later on.

A frequent criticism levied against improve-for-you water ice creams, Halo Top said, is that they are not as creamy in texture as regular water ice cream.

Wells Enterprises, which owns Bluish Bunny water ice cream and other frozen treats, "started tinkering and thinking" nigh how to improve the texture of the low-calorie snack soon later on buying information technology in 2019, according to Ryan Roznowski, senior brand managing director for Halo Top.

During the next ii and a half years, Wells created hundreds of different iterations of the ice cream before selecting the new recipe and replacements for its 21 different flavors. Wells had fans of the brand endeavour the new varieties.

"We were very, very careful that we were strictly improving and that we weren't doing annihilation to a product that so many people beloved out there and that it was going to be detrimental," Roznowski said. "All the testing shows, this is the one."

The beginning season to contain Halo Top'south creamier texture is its new Chocolate Cake Batter — a chocolatey cake batter flavored ice cream with colored sprinkles — that is debuting simply in fourth dimension to gloat the brand'due south 10th birthday. Most of Halo Tiptop's other flavors with the new recipe will be available in grocery stores nationwide afterwards this spring.

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After launching in 2012 in a Los Angeles garage, Halo Top skyrocketed from zero to market dominance inside five years through its then-novel approach of posting the ice cream's calorie count prominently on the front of its packaging and touting its loftier protein and low sugar content. Information technology rapidly rose to go the No. 1 selling pint of ice foam in the U.South.

After sales soared a staggering 680% to $373 million as recently as 2017, Halo Top has seen declines each of the past 4 calendar years, according to IRI, a Chicago-based market place research firm. In 2021, sales of the low-calorie ice foam totaled nearly $211 million, a decline of 43% from 2017. Halo Height was the 16th almost popular water ice cream and frozen dessert make in the U.South. based on retail sales in 2019 compared to 21st concluding year, according to Euromonitor.

But there were signs of a turnaround for the brand even before the switch to ultrafiltered milk. Halo Top, which has the No. i dollar share in the better-for-you lot pint segment, according to Nielsen data provided by the company, has seen household penetration ascent 14% during the past year. In the last 52 weeks ending March 20, dollar sales accept stabilized — likely the result of a 10-cent increment in the average cost — though unit sales accept continued to sideslip, IRI information showed.

The pass up for Halo Top in recent years is the event of robust competition as big brands, enamored with the upstart'south success, debuted their ain offerings.

Unilever'due south Breyers make responded by launching a low-calorie, high-protein line called Breyers Delights featuring labeling and packaging similar to Halo Top. The company followed upwards with low-fatty, low-calorie products from its Ben & Jerry's brand and with its Culture Republick line of probiotic ice cream. Even retail behemothic Target rolled out its ain Halo Superlative-esque ice cream from in-house brand Archer Farms. Other upstart brands have since entered the market place with their ain offerings.

"You've got a lot of competitors out there that kind of tried to take our formula and make information technology their own and it's a more competitive market," Roznowski said. "We hope that as we continue improving the core behind the Halo Top production that fans will continue to vote with their bellies. We idea that improved texture might actually move the needle."

In recent years, Halo Top has expanded its reach in frozen treats with sorbets, bars and frozen fruit pops. Roznowski said Halo Top is planning to bring the make into other categories during the side by side few years, which could include its outset foray beyond frozen. He declined to discuss what new products are being considered.

"I wouldn't be surprised to see Halo Top continue to branch out further and further," he said. "Wells is a frozen treats visitor, right? That's plainly the bread and butter of what we'll continue to do and information technology's where all of our business organisation is today, but never say never."