Since buying the Dovebar brand 35 years ago, Mars has been an innovator in the ice cream category. The Newark, New Jersey, USA-headquartered company produces and markets confectionery, snacks, food and pet care products as well as frozen treats. Today, the Mars Ice Cream ambition is to grow the business to $1 billion in value by 2030.
The global ice cream market is projected to hit $104.96 billion by 2029, up significantly from $73.62 billion in 2021, and Mars has several of the top selling products in North America’s frozen novelty category, including Snickers Ice Cream Bars, M&M’s Ice Cream Sandwiches, Twix Ice Cream and Kind frozen treats.
Today, the company boasts twelve separate billion-dollar brands around the world across snacking, pet and food categories. Reaching $1 billion in sales would place Mars Ice Cream in the top ranking, among standouts that include M&M’s candy, Extra gum and Snickers bars, Pedigree and Roman Canon pet foods and Mars’ VCA veterinary clinic chain.
“The widespread popularity of iconic Mars brands gives consumers the opportunity to enjoy their favorite candies as innovative Mars Ice Cream products,” said General Manager Shaf Lalanir. “The Dovebar is the first Mars Ice Cream product with a sustainability ambition. From farm to factory to freezer, the silky-smooth bars are made with positive societal impact in mind.”
The products feature 100% real ice cream using vanilla that’s sourced from a large-scale vanilla project in Madagascar. In partnership with the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming (L3F), the enterprise is working to improve the lives of 2,700 people with a specific focus of empowering female vanilla farmers, improving the financial stability of all farmers and their communities, and preserving local biodiversity while cultivating a resilient vanilla supply chain.
According to a press release, the company “is committed to embedding sustainable solutions throughout its operations, which includes our ice cream Dovebars made at the Mars Wrigley’s Burr Ridge facility in Illinois, which sources 100% renewable electricity and sends zero waste to landfills.
Mars is investing hundreds of millions of dollars in innovative sustainable packaging with the aim to have 100% of all its packaging reusable, recyclable or compostable. Among other Mars Ice Cream product packaging updates, the company recently reduced the film gauge in its Dove Ice Cream Bars, which eliminates 27 tons of plastic annually, across four different product offerings.
“We see an opportunity to grow our ice cream business not only in North America, but around the globe,” said Anton Vincent, president at Mars Wrigley North America and newly appointed head of Mars Ice Cream globally. “We’re innovating with a focus on product and purpose, and expanding our global manufacturing capabilities to ensure we can meet rapidly rising consumer demand.”
