Why Is Some Ice Cream Sold in Pints?

You’re at your local grocery store, strolling through the frozen food aisles and searching through the many flavors of ice cream. It’s been a rough week—you’re looking to drown your feelings in cold, creamy goodness. The only problem is that you can’t decide on which flavor to get. If you’re in the mood for a lot of ice cream, you could always go for one of the many gallon tubs available, but if you go for one of those options your only options are really chocolate, strawberry, or vanilla (or if you’re in the mood for Neopolitan, all three in one big plastic container.)

If you still want a large amount of ice cream but you’re looking for some more flavor options, there’s always the trusty cardboard carton of ice cream. The size varies from brand to brand, but with more diverse flavor options like mint chocolate chip or the tried and true classic, moose tracks, your sorrows might be drowned in a little more flavor (plus mix-ins) if you go for this option.

The problem lies herin—your favorite Ben & Jerry’s flavor is staring you down from its blue cylindrical packaging, and your hand is immediately drawn to the shiny metal freezer door. The only problem? You can’t purchase a bigger container filled with the perfect combination of creamy ice cream, unique mix-ins, and a fudgy swirl.

So why do some ice cream brands and flavors only come in pint-sized containers? Why can’t you purchase a big reusable gallon-sized tub of Chunky Monkey ice cream? Why does gelato only come in prettily packaged small containers?

The reason might not be what you think.

Good things come in small packages.

At least, that’s what your favorite ice cream brand wants you to think. Pints of ice cream tend to cost more money at the grocery store, even if the ingredients inside aren’t that much more luxurious than your run-of-the-mill ice cream ingredients. Despite this, brands that sell ice cream primarily in pint-sized containers often tout their ice cream as artisan and hand-crafted, leading many to believe the extra cost is worth it.

For some ice cream connoisseurs, the trade is worth it—if you’re on the hunt for a new or unique flavor, after all, you’re less likely to waste your pint of ice cream if it doesn’t turn out to be your new favorite flavor. It’s less wasteful in those cases for both the ice cream lover and for the ice cream maker.

Innovative flavors often come in small batches.

There are some even more unique reasons why some ice cream brands come primarily in pint-sized containers, and that has to do with the experimental flavors and finessing of certain varieties that come with the territory of creating unique ice cream flavors. Certain ice cream mix-ins like fruit sauces and other less-traditional add-ins don’t freeze as well in large batches. When creating new flavors, especially those with a variety of mix-ins, creating small batches and, consequently, small containers of ice cream, makes for better, more flavorful results.

When chunks of chocolate or swirls of sauces are added to a basic ice cream mixture, there is a risk of the ice cream collapsing in on itself. One of the key ingredients in ice cream is air, after all, which gives it the creamy texture that everyone knows and loves. When other, more dense ingredients like those in many specialty ice cream brands are added, the mixture becomes less stable—particularly when it’s placed in large containers that are often brought in and out of the freezer numerous times during transport and once the ice cream is consumed at home.

Some especially innovative ice cream flavors, like those involving layers or a core down the center of the ice cream, really only work in a pint-sized container. In order to get the ratio of the ingredients included in the layers or core right with the ratio of the ice cream and other mix-ins, a pint-sized container works the best.

The best flavors come in easy-to-divy-up serving sizes.

Another reason many ice cream brands go for pints, especially those with nutritional and dietary needs at the forefront like those that are low carb, high protein, or dairy-free, is because the pint can be simply divided up into one or two serving sizes.

For some ice cream lovers, a full pint is a serving size, which makes calculating your nutritional facts from the back label particularly easy. For others, the whole pint might be a bit too much, but one half or one-third of the container is perfect. Even in those cases where a whole pint isn’t the entire serving, it does make for easier calculations when figuring out nutritional values. Determining those same values with a scoop or two (or three) of your favorite ice cream from a larger carton is doable, but a bit more complicated as you attempt to measure out each scoop—let’s face it, ice cream doesn’t exactly scoop easily and uniformly into a measuring cup.

But what if you just want a lot of ice cream?

The reasons some ice cream brands, and consequently some ice cream flavors, are only served up in pint-sized containers might be logical, but what’s a person to do when they’re in the mood to drown their troubles in ice cream and can only find a pint of their favorite flavor? The solution, it seems, is to either opt for another variety of ice cream or buy out your grocery store’s stock of your favorite pint! While it might cost you a bit more than that gallon of vanilla ice cream, it will ensure that you won’t run out just when you’re starting to feel a bit better, but also need a bit more ice cream.

So keep this in mind the next time you’re contemplating which type of ice cream to purchase at the store. While we’d all love to have a big ole bucket of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream sometimes, there are actually some valid reasons, not every flavor can be produced in that large of a quantity. So now it’s up to you to choose how you want your ice cream—in a pint, or sold with a handle?