April 16,2018-
OK, it’s not the time of year you look for robust ice cream sales. Still ice cream sales in California compared to a year ago – same time – are down a hefty 33 percent. California is the largest producer ice cream.
In February California ice cream plants sold 6.4 million gallons compared to 8.7 million gallons in February 2017. The figures are collected monthly by CDFA.
California February sales of ice cream for the past five years have hovered in the 8 to 9 million gallons range. From 2013 to 2017 ,annual gallon sales have dropped by just under 20%. But now they’ve taken another leg down if this trend continues.
While the world still screams for ice cream the popularity of milk-based frozen deserts in North America and Europe is expected to decline owing to growing number of health-conscious consumers in the region.
The trend is the same for fluid milk sales in California – down around 16% from 2013-2017.