Lockdown passion for premium ice cream benefits Mackie’s of Scotland as sales surge

Mackie’s of Scotland has scooped out further market share after a UK-wide trend towards indulgent ice cream brands over the past year.

Mackie's of Scotland has a ‘sky to scoop’ ethos which sees it create everything from milk to its packaging on site, powered predominantly by renewable energy.

Demand for premium ice cream brands grew significantly in 2020, according to Kantar Worldpanel, with an overall increase of 17.5 per cent.

Aberdeenshire family brand Mackie’s said it had experienced a 37 per cent leap in sales, meaning that the brand now has an estimated 6 per cent slice of the UK market after increasing sales in all major retailers. It comes against an increase in demand for comfort foods amid the pandemic.

Stuart Common, sales director at Mackie’s, said: “We’ve been making ice cream since 1986 and it is always fascinating to see how trends develop.

“It reassures us that consumers always appear to revert back to wanting an affordable indulgent treat, something that can give them a real taste sensation and that they can enjoy in moderation.

“Clearly this has been a time of great uncertainty to people. We hope that our products can bring some comfort – and little moments of joy.”

Mackie’s traditional real dairy ice cream, its original flavour, was created by the former milk retail company when semi-skimmed milk became popular, leaving the company with an excess of cream on the farm.

The fourth-generation family farm is based in north-east Scotland and still produces all its ice cream using fresh milk and cream from its dairy herd on the farm.

The company’s “sky to scoop” ethos sees it create everything from milk to its packaging on site, powered predominantly by renewable energy.

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this article. We’re more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers. If you haven’t already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription: www.scotsman.com/subscriptions