Taking a trip to the local neighborhood ice cream shop is a common fond childhood memory for many Americans. Whether it’s visiting to order your favorite ice cream or gelato flavor, or to try a shop’s array of flavors with their many colored spoons, ice cream shops are highly regarded in the U.S. Just how many ice cream shops are in America, though? How common of a dessert is ice cream? How many gallons of the delicious frozen treat are prepared each year? These are all important questions when determining ice cream, gelato, and frozen yogurt’s status in our society.
For starters, there were about 2,582 frozen yogurt stores alone by the end of 2013. That’s not counting ice cream or gelato shops. In terms of just how popular the treat is, well, an average person in the U.S. eats the frozen treat about 28.5 times each year, and about 90 percent of American households eat ice cream, gelato, or frozen yogurt on a regular basis. In fact, in an average two-week span of time, an estimated 40 percent of people in the U.S. will eat some sort of sweet frozen treat, according to studies conducted by the NPD Group.
To ensure all those people are able to feast on ice cream, the U.S. has to produce a lot of the frozen treat. In fact, each year there is an estimated 1.5 billion gallons of ice cream and other frozen desserts manufactured and sold in the U.S. Countless flavors are produced, from chocolate to sherbert to cookies and cream. However, a survey conducted by different International Ice Cream Company Association member companies have found that despite all the flavors people can try in ice cream shops with tasting spoons across the country, vanilla is the most popular among consumers.
So what are you waiting for? Ice cream, gelato, and frozen yogurt are delicious frozen treats that can be enjoyed year around, by everyone, regardless of age. So the next time you find yourself in an ice cream shop, pick up some colored spoons and start trying the many flavors. Who knows? You might find your new favorite.
