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Caribbean Food and Drink, Products, Market Overview of Ethnic Foods

Barbados Ice Cream Company Ltd (BICO)

Barbados largest ice cream manufacturer strives to find a perfect balance between traditional and new reduced fat ice-creams as it seeks to increase exports and open up new markets.

 

IN mid-1997 BICO Ltd. launched its first low-fat ice cream. Called "Perfect Balance", the product contains 4.6% fat, compared to 10% in Bico's Double Delight range and most other 'regular' ice creams.

 

Fat reduced by 10%

To replace the solids, Bico did not wish to follow other ice cream makers and use bulking agents. "Using maltodextrin allowed us to reduce the total fat of 10% found in regular ice cream by more than half. It was very important for us to
maintain the 'mouthfeel' of the ice cream," he said.

The launch of Perfect Balance came as the result of market research which identified consumer demand for low fat ice cream. "We worked on the project with Germantown, a leading manufacturer of stabilizers and emulsifiers," adds Mr. St. John.

In addition to its first foray into low fat products, Bico also launched in mid-1996 a new line of Popsicles, called "Fruit Ice", "Choc Ice" and "Nice Cream" (June 1997)

 

To Jamaica with Grace

Bico has also sent its first shipment of samples to Grace Kennedy in Jamaica, and Mr. St. John says the company is very excited about the possibilities of entering this market with Grace as the distribution partner. Further afield, Bico is hoping that a connection with the Win-Dixie chain of supermarkets may yield a lucrative licensing contract with a U.S. ice cream manufacturer. It is hoped that a whole range of tropical flavours could be made by a dairy under the Bico name for distribution through the 150 Win-Dixie outlets, located mainly in the southern United States.

 

History of BICO

The Barbados Ice Co. (BICO) was formed in 1901 as the result of a merger between two ice-making companies, both then located in Bridgetown. The new company became a pioneer in refrigeration techniques out of necessity and within a year moved to its new plant on Bay Street. By 1910 Bico had become so efficient at cold storage that it began to offer the service to other companies as a commercial warehouse.

For decades, providing cold storage facilities was Bico's chief business, and it was only in 1949 that the company got into the ice cream business. In 1964, the then prime minister, Errol Barrow, received an offer from a shipping line to set up a cold storage facility at the newly completed Deep Water Harbour. The prime minister invited Bico to do so instead, offering to retake the land available. The company accepted, and while the new cold storage facilities were being built, the company also decided to build modern ice cream plant as well. 

 

By 1967 Bico was installed at it’s new Harbour Industrial Park premises and subsequently became a sub-contractor for the Port Authority, a collaboration which has worked well for both sides and the customer, who can get everything on-site, from the health and customs inspection to the administrative paperwork. Bico is paid by the port for RS&D receipt, storage and delivery within eight days.

 

The service, says Mr. St. John, is unique, for even in other parts of the Caribbean cold storage is located outside of the port, "so you have to clear customs and go through other formalities" before taking the product to the refrigeration area. "But ours is in the port itself, and we are in turn responsible to :the customs department." 

 

Today; of course the greater portion of Bico's revenue comes from the ice-cream sales, and more of this is being generated every year by exports.

 

Bico is a public company listed on the Securities Exchange of Barbados. For the fiscal year ended September 30, 1996, Bico's turn-over was Bds$13.4 million and its net book value Bds$8.1 million.

 

Bico Ice Creams are available in the following formats:

OLD FASHIONED

·         Super premium ice cream

·         Very rich and creamy

 

DIABETIC

• Sugar free and sweetened with aspartame
• Low in calories
• Made with non-milk fat and only contains 3 % fat
• No artificial coloring or preservatives
• Available in three (3) flavours

LACTOSE FREE "First Glace"

• Non-dairy lactose free frozen desert
• Made with organic soyabeans
• Suitable for vegetarians and vegans
• Contains no cholesterol, artificial additives or artificial colouring

Bico Ice Cream Flavours