Rum and raisin ice cream is disappearing from supermarket shelves across New Zealand, with many shoppers left hunting for the sophisticated taste.
Multiple New Zealand supermarkets say that after reviewing sales for the nostalgic flavour, they have been forced to replace it with more modern treats over the past year.
New Zealanders are among the world’s biggest consumers of ice cream, averaging roughly 28 litres per person annually, but the taste for rum and raisin appears to have waned.
It is not all bad news for those who love the alcohol-inspired flavour, , with one major manufacturer signalling a potential comeback.
The nostalgic flavour, more often a favourite of older customers, has not yet met “classic” status, according to some supermarkets.
A Foodstuffs spokesperson said rum and raisin seemed to be heading into the twilight of its time in the freezer aisle.
“The last product ranged in our stores was a Much Moore line, which was discontinued by the supplier over a year ago after sales tapered off.”
As a co-operative, Foodstuffs stocked what customers were buying.
“Ice cream tastes definitely shift over time. Flavours come and go as new favourites emerge,” the spokesperson said.
While rum and raisin had its loyal fans, today’s shoppers had more choice than ever, from indulgent chocolate brownie and salted caramel swirls to plant-based options and premium small-batch flavours.
Despite the array of choices available, some ice cream flavours still qualify as “classics”.
The spokesperson said flavours like vanilla, chocolate ripple, hokey pokey and Neapolitan had been enjoyed by generations of New Zealanders and showed no sign of going out of style.
A Woolworths New Zealand spokesperson said the company worked hard to ensure that the products it stocks are the products customers want to buy.
“We recently reviewed our ice cream category, as we regularly do with all products we sell.
“Unfortunately, rum and raisin isn’t the big seller it once was, and we decided to replace Much Moore Awesome Rum & Raisin 2 litre with Much Moore Awesome Chocolate Cookies 2 litre,” the Woolworths NZ spokesperson said.
Despite the flavour vanishing from supermarkets, a shop known for the biggest icecreams in the country said the flavour was still a top pick.
Original Pokeno Ice Creams worker Jacob told the Herald that rum and raisin remained within the store’s top 10 sellers, but hokey pokey consistently took the top spot.
The store has served several generations of Kiwis, and it remains one of the country’s most popular pit-stops for tourists.
Duck Island Ice Cream operations manager, Lauren Clark, told the Herald the “fuddy duddy” flavour was not a favourite in their cabinet over recent years.
She said they haven’t stocked the flavour consistently in the five years she has been with the company.
“It’s just a little bit of a flop in the cabinet in comparison to perhaps newer classics ... like berry cheesecakes and white chocolate raspberry,” she said.
Clark said they had done a modern iteration of the flavour in the form of Whiskey and currants, which didn’t take off.
She said a reason for the flavours’ downfall could be due to the alcohol.
Clark said it can be attractive for some, but detractive to others, with non-drinking on the rise.
A Much Moore spokesperson said rum and raisin is a tough find in supermarkets at the moment.
“It’s not that we have stopped making it – we still make it for food service, export and ice cream parlour."
The spokesperson said the company would love to see the flavour come back after it regularly heard from shoppers who had been hunting for it.
“If there’s one thing we have learned, it’s that rum and raisin fans are persistent.
“We are listening … and a comeback might just be on the cards," the spokesperson said.
According to the Tasting Table, the flavour originated in the Italian region of Sicily in the 1930s. It rose to popularity across the United States in the 1980s.
Rather than rum raisin, the treat was initially called “Malaga gelato”.
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