Retro ice cream Vēsma reborn with new and vegan-friendly flavors; investment exceeds 40,000 euros

  • 2024-05-31

Attention, attention – fresh winds are blowing in the Latvian ice cream industry! The legendary lemon ice cream Vēsma of the Tio brand is back with three refreshing news – a new “retro” style design, a new and light flavor in a waffer cone, two brand new and vegan-friendly sorbet ice creams on sticks. 

The innovative overhaul of Vēsma has happened thanks to the sustainability initiative of Latvia’s leading dairy company Food Union to offer consumers nutritionally “lighter” dairy and vegan-friendly ice creams made exclusively from fruit and berries. The recipes of the new products have been developed at the Food Union’s ice cream competence center in Riga. Meanwhile, investments made to develop and launch the Vesma ice creams of the Tio brand on the Latvian market are estimated at roughly 40,000 euros. 

Ģirts Liniņš, Food Union Ice Cream Brand Manager, says: “The hotter the summer, the cooler the Vēsma ice cream! And vice versa, because whatever the weather in June, July and August, we will want to enjoy the season in any case. If it's hot, let's refresh ourselves with Vēsma. If it's chilly, we'll enjoy Vēsma anyway, because ice cream is the most authentic taste of summer. And of course, let's not forget about our healthy lifestyle habits, in which the Vēsma ice creams, made either from skim cheese whey or vegan-friendly ingredients, will fit in perfectly!” 

Apple and lemon in a cup

In response to the growing demand for nutritionally "lighter" ice creams, the Vēsma line has been expanded by adding one new product in a wafer cup. This unique cheese whey ice cream is now also available in a refreshing green apple flavor. In addition, consumers are also offered the legendary lemon-flavored Vēsma, which is made to the same old recipe but with a new wrapping at Food Union's main European factory, Rīgas piena kombināts, since 1975.

Two vegan-friendly ice creams – on sticks

This summer, Vēsma aims to become the leading industrially produced vegan-friendly ice cream brand in Latvia. For this reason, a brand new product category has been introduced - two fruit and berry sorbets on sticks, which are basically made exclusively from plant-based ingredients. As a result, sorbet ice creams made from real raspberries and mangoes are now available to every consumer favoring a vegan diet.

All four new Vēsma ice creams of the Tio brand are now available in the most popular stores across Latvia.

ABOUT FOOD UNION LATVIA

In Latvia, Food Union is the leading producer and distributor of fresh dairy products and ice cream. The Food Union group in Latvia comprises Rīgas piena kombināts, Valmieras piens, and Premia FFL. In the market, the company is renowned for historic and widely recognized brands such as Kārums, Limbažu piens, Valmiera, Lakto, Pols, Ekselence, and TIO. The company’s key expertise lies mostly in the fresh dairy and ice cream segments and its brand portfolio boasts healthy and high value-added products made from the very best quality milk sourced from over 100 Latvian farmers. The central office of the Food Union Group is situated in Latvia. Since 2019, Riga has served as the group's ice cream development center. Each year, the Ice Cream Competence Center develops over 100 new ice cream varieties for the European market.