Pols celebrates 50 years at the cutting edge of ice-cream innovation

Food Union, the international dairy and ice cream production and distributing group, is proud to announce one of the icons in its portfolio has celebrated its 50-year anniversary. Pols has cemented its place in the hearts of consumers for half a decade and is now recognized widely as the oldest ice cream brand in Latvia, making it a cornerstone in the Food Union portfolio.

Since its inception in 1971, Pols’ classic recipe has endured as a mark of ‘farm-fresh’ quality and remains unchanged to this day. Pols is highly committed to simple, high-quality, natural ingredients with no preservatives or emulsifiers and perhaps, more than ever, the consumer market values this ethos. By using creamy milk produced by local farmers, its signature recipe offers farm-fresh goodness and a richness of taste. As a result, the brand and its well-known polar bear logo is recognised as a symbol of excellence and innovations in the industry.

Since opening Latvia’s first industrial scale ice-cream factory in 1971, the brand has prided itself on its balance of tradition with an innovative culture which has ensured it remains top of mind and has enjoyed continued success and longevity.

Sandra Usacheva, Pols Brands Manager, said:

“This is a massive achievement in terms of building a brand that not only endures but also innovates, capturing hearts and market-share and during the past 50 years Pols has succeeded at becoming an iconic brand in the Baltic States and is showing impressive results in South East Asia. I feel great pride in having reached this milestone and would like to give my thanks to everyone who has contributed to this landmark achievement throughout Pols’ history.”

From bold formats, bright colors to non-standard sizes and imaginative flavors, Pols’  commitment to innovation has produced a delicious array of top-selling ice cream products throughout its history by:

• Innovating with flavour – In 2020 Pols produced its legendary candy floss flavored ice cream – “Pols” cotton candy flavour.
• Innovating with colour – Pols was one of the first big brands to go against the traditional golden wafer and create a black wafer, which became the best-selling novelty ice cream in 2019.
• Innovating with shapes – In summer 2021, Pols launched a quirky doughnut shaped vanilla ice cream in choco glaze with sprinkles as well as a hockey puck shaped ice cream in celebration of the World Ice Hockey Championships in Latvia.
• Innovating with moments of joy – Pols has taken ice-cream into the movie moment by combining ice cream with popcorn and even potato chips.
• Innovating using tradition – In 2013, Pols, returned to its roots and launched a special “Pols retro” line in vintage-style paper packaging, now widely available in HongKong and Taiwan.
• Innovating with categories – To properly celebrate one’s 50 years anniversary, Pols has gained some inspiration from confectionery industry and created a box of ice cream filled chocolate candies for sharing with friends and family.

Normunds Stanevics. CEO of Food Union Group Europe, notes:

“The Food Union portfolio is committed to building a compendium of power-brands that resonate with consumers and offer long-term value. It is the power to endure, grow and innovate over time that cements market leadership and true brand value. Pols, as one of the oldest ice-cream brands in our group, is focused on long-term brand fundamentals that have endured 50 years through being focused on quality, staying true to their roots and yet staying fresh through new innovative formats. We are immensely proud of all they have achieved.” 

Over its 50-year history, Pols has continued to grow and offer its products to an expanding international market and currently exports across Baltic States, as well as South East Asian countries including Hong Kong, Taiwan and Singapore.