The U.S. retail ice cream segment certainly has seen easier times. According to "Ice Cream and Frozen Novelties - U.S.," a report published in May 2019 by global market research firm Mintel, the mature and diverse category is "finding growth elusive."

The competition among ice cream brands remains fierce, as some scramble to answer the call for "healthy indulgence" and others seek to grab attention with unique flavors and premiumization.

Ice cream sales continue to show promise as dollar and unit sales both see a boost. Frozen novelty sales also went up, thanks to price increases, because unit sales were almost at a standstill.