Freezing point and footprints: a comparative life cycle assessment of standard and high-freezing-point ice cream production

Abstract

Cold-chain logistics are a key hotspot in the ice cream industry due to the need for uninterrupted sub-zero refrigeration, about −32 °C to −20 °C for plant storage and −18 °C throughout distribution and retail. This study conducts a cradle to gate comparative life cycle assessment of a standard ice cream and a high-freezing-point (HFP) reformulation mix by reducing sugar from 17% to 10% and substituting it with non-caloric soluble corn fiber. Operationally, the standard mix reached a draw temperature of −6.0 ± 0.2 °C, whereas the HFP mix drew −4.5 ± 0.1 °C, indicating less sub-zero cooling for HFP. Across all midpoint environmental impact categories considered, HFP reduced average impacts by 9–33%; notably, global warming potential (GWP) fell from 2.84 to 2.43 kg CO₂-eq. per kg (−14%), eutrophication from 0.027 to 0.022 kg N-eq. per kg (−16%), and fossil-fuel depletion from 1.919 to 1.744 MJ-surplus per kg (9.1%). Manufacturing, driven by cold storage, was the largest contributor; with warmer draw and storage temperatures, HFP reduced manufacturing's GWP share from 56% to 49%. Ingredient-stage GWP was similar across both mixes, with dairy inputs (skim milk powder, skim milk, cream) as the main upstream hotspots. Impacts were sensitive to storage time and inventories for skim milk powder, skim milk, cream, sugar, and soluble corn fiber, respectively. The impact of packaging was identical at 0.107 kg CO₂-eq. per kg. Uncertainty analysis explored robustness, where HFP results were consistently lower, with variability dominated by storage time and dairy emission factors. These findings indicate that HFP has the potential to deliver immediate, plant-side energy savings and emissions reductions, lowering overall impacts and contributing to Scope 1,2,3 emission reduction. Future work could include a cradle-to-grave assessment covering distribution, retail and end-of-life to capture downstream cold-chain nuances.