Technomic’s new “Market Intelligence Report: Ice Cream” found that frozen yogurt concepts occupy both the top and the bottom of the frozen desserts/snacks growth spectrum.

All but one of the 10 fastest growing chains were frozen yogurt concepts, even though other frozen yogurt chains experienced some of the largest declines within the top 500 chains.

Frozen yogurt’s resurgence was first reported in 2007 thanks to the popularity of Pinkberry. The segment also has been boosted by TCBY’s continued growth and reimaging and the growth of Red Mango. Other chains expanding their footprints include Yogurtini, FreshBerry, U-Swirl and Yogurt Mountain.

The fro-yo market seems hot enough for big players such as Jamba Juice and Cold Stone Creamery to throw their hats into the ring. Jamba Juice introduced its line of frozen yogurt in December, while Cold Stone began adding yogurt bars in January.

“With the growing popularity of frozen yogurt and a continued consumer preference toward choice and customization, we see a significant opportunity for our brand, our franchisees and our customers as we evolve and introduce a frozen yogurt we know will be the best in its category,” said Dan Beem, president of Cold Stone Creamery, at the time of the first rollout.

Classic ice cream flavors still dominate

Also, Technomic’s report showed that production of ice cream and frozen novelties in the retail sector is concentrated, with the top 10 manufacturers accounting for almost 70 percent of the total sales.

Of all desserts tracked by Technomic in the first half of 2010, frozen offerings comprised of nearly one-third (28.4 percent) of menu items. The classics – vanilla and chocolate ice cream – are consumed by approximately half of consumers at least once a month.

But while vanilla and chocolate dominate the ice cream category, there are a multitude of milkshakes, sundaes, frozen yogurts, sorbets, gelatos and even tofu based non-dairy dessert flavors that stick out to consumers.

“Complexity, customization and portions are all very important. Operators need to differentiate their items from those offered by retailers, and they need to make the offerings available in various sizes to attract diners who are concerned with health, value, or who are simply too full to eat a large dessert,” said Mary Chapman, director at Technomic.

A perfect example of such differentiation is Dairy Queen’s launch of its Mini Blizzard in August 2010. Sales for the original Blizzard increased by 15 percent in 2010 from 2009, and those numbers were before the Mini Blizzard was rolled out nationally. 

A recent U.S. Market for Ice Cream and Related Frozen Desserts report reiterates Technomic’s data, predicting the ice cream and frozen dessert market to grow by more than $4 billion (to $27.6 billion) by 2012. Frozen yogurt's sales jumped by 12 percent from 2006 to 2007 alone.

Technomic’s report was derived from its MenuMonitor online resource, which tracks 1,200 of the top chains, emerging concepts and independent restaurants.