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Consumers love their ice cream and other frozen and refrigerated treats and prefer them in their most natural forms. There is still a strong desire to eat healthy, but for many, not if it means giving up the indulgence factor. Several ice cream brands have taken on this challenge, creating lines that cut back on calories and sugar but with the mouthfeel consumers expect from ice cream.

When it comes to artisan ice cream making, flavors, transparency and authenticity are what matter, according to Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream. The company makes dairy-based and vegan ice creams for its scoop shops, food trucks and retail customers. The company claims it makes the “absolute best vegan ice cream,” and it has a customer following and a taste that backs up that claim, (this editor can attest).

Van Leeuwen Artisan Ice Cream wants to make people happy with ice cream. The company set out to revive the classic American ice cream truck and the art of traditional ice cream making using only the highest-quality ingredients and no stabilizers. For the company, it’s about being authentic and making ice cream that is truly pure.

Solar panels power two food processing plants in Pittsburg, Calif. Ramar Foods makes its Magnolia brand ice cream and novelties in one 17,000-square-foot facility.

Like in 2000 and 2004, Madagascar vanilla is in short supply and expensive. What’s an ice cream maker to do?

Ramar Foods started out serving Asian groceries. Now, after repositioning its Magnolia ice cream brand, the California processor is picking up mainstream retailers. Yet the third-generation management stays true to its Filipino roots.