New Zealand is famous around the world for its ice cream, but Canstar Blue recently sought to find out which brands are tickling tastebuds here at home. Three brands topped the ratings for overall customer satisfaction, including Rush Munro’s. So we asked a spokesperson what the company’s secret ingredient is.
Q) Taste is naturally the greatest driver of customer satisfaction when consumers buy ice cream. However, people also want their favourite brand to have a good variety and range of different flavours. Can you tell us about your range of ice creams and which are most popular in New Zealand? Perhaps you could tell us about any flavours in the pipeline?
A) Rush Munro’s Ice Cream has an extensive range of iconic flavours, which are all made with real fruit and no colours or preservatives. Our premium, ice cream, made with 100 per cent natural ingredients comes in 24 different flavours. Our Maple and Walnut and Vanilla Bean continue to be our most popular flavours. Our real fruit ice creams including Feijoa and Passionfruit are also very popular.
Last year Rush Munro’s Maple and Walnut Ice Cream was named the best in the country at the National Ice Cream Awards. Rush Munro’s is proudly New Zealand’s oldest ice cream maker, handcrafting ice cream since 1926. We’ve been making ice cream for a long time and I think the Rush Munro’s flavours taste so good because we make it with care in small batches so the quality is high.
Q) One in three adults told us they have a preference for low fat ice creams. Do you think there is a trend towards low fat ice cream products?
A) Rush Munro does not have a low fat ice cream range. To make ice cream you need to have a minimum fat content of 10% and premium ice cream is typically around 12 – 16%.There is huge demand for our premium ice cream which is made with real fruit and 100% natural ingredients. Consumers are becoming better informed and knowledgeable about ingredients and they are looking at ingredient lists more frequently, and we at RM are focused on using nothing but natural ingredients to deliver the best tasting product to the consumer. Most of the fruit and ingredients that goes into our ice cream is sourced from local growers and suppliers around the Hawke’s Bay region.
Q) Kiwis love ice cream but many aren’t too familiar with its ingredients – only 50% told us they read the ingredients before buying. Can you tell us about your basic ingredients and the process of making your ice cream?
A) Each batch of ice cream is hand crafted and batch churned to create the beautiful premium ice cream we are known for, 100% natural, 100% delicious. When we say 100% natural, we really mean it. Our products have a very short ingredient list that you don’t need a food science degree to understand! That’s because we only use what’s needed to produce delicious natural ice cream: pure New Zealand dairy, fresh eggs and the finest locally sourced ingredients.
Q) New Zealand seems to have a great reputation around the world for producing quality confectionery, ice cream and dairy products. Is this your experience of the industry and what do you attribute it too?
A) Although the team at Rush Munro’s are thrilled to be part of a world renowned New Zealand Dairy Industry we’re solely focused, for the time being, on ensuring the ice cream we produce is in line with the vision of it’s founder over 80 years ago, with the desire to provide New Zealanders’ as well the many international visitors who visit the Hastings area and visit the iconic Rush Munro Ice Cream shop with best handmade, 100% natural and we think tastiest ice cream in New Zealand!
You can see our customer satisfaction ratings for ice cream brands here.
Share this article