The National Ice Cream competition 2020

Guido Morelli ‘Rising Star Award’ Winner 2020

A huge congratulations to the current Minchella & Co director and team leader, Joe Minchella for winning the Guido Morelli award, an award created by the Morelli family, to honour a rising star in the ice cream industry, in memory of past president Guido Morelli (Northern Ireland Division). The award is a class in the National Ice Cream Competition, hosted by the Ice Cream Alliance (The UK trade association for Ice Cream Manufacturers & Retailers).

https://www.ice-cream.org/content/about-ica

Here is an extract summarising Joe’s achievements and the reasons he was selected as the winner of this prestigious award…

“After taking over the business six years ago, following the attainment of a degree in Applied Management, Joe has radically modernised the business’ systems and procedures in all its functions by investing in technology, training and procurement. With his continual focus on an ethical company culture, Joe has built a team that have enhanced everything from inventory management and production through to marketing, sales and service.

One of Joe’s most recent achievements was leading Minchella & Co to numerous gold medals in the 2018/2019 National Ice Cream Competition, winning the most prestigious accolade and being crowned National Ice Cream Champions for their Pistachio and best in class for their Lemon Sorbet.

Joe’s commitment to being quality focused has seen original recipes refined to an overall more consistent product through training, research and the use of more sustainable ingredients. He has recently attracted local media attention by creating innovative new concepts, recipes and ice cream products to attract; lactose intolerant, milk allergy sufferers and vegan customers into his parlours.

His emphasis on quality saw major research and investment in the businesses coffee making equipment which helped elevate the standard and supply the demand over peak season, supporting local, organic dairy farming in the process.

2019 saw Joe refining methods that allowed the business to expand into new markets such as events, weddings and food festivals. In addition, his flexible and innovative approach to wholesale aims to tailor to individual clients’ needs, this has allowed for growth in this sector.

Current business development includes; upgrading a high volume store to capitalise on sales during peak season and continually inventing imaginative products to direct retail custom out of season”.

Alternative Class Winners 2020 : Vegan Peach

Minchella & Co won first prize in this class for their Vegan Peach. The Alternative class is to allow further innovation and to reflect the changing and new markets in the ice cream industry. This product was created to allow; milk allergy sufferers, lactose intolerant customers and vegans to enjoy Minchella & Co ice cream without the dairy. It aimed to address the ‘creamy’ attributes found in the original recipe which was attempted to be replicated whilst not compromising on flavour.