Alt Scoop enters the market as a sustainable, great tasting, and uncompromising ice cream option
Scratch the title. No gatekeeping intended. This non-dairy ice cream is for both vegans and regular foodies to try. Hygge Bev Co., the company that introduced to the Philippines the Danish concept “Hygge” (pronounced as hoo-gah or hue-guh), a noun or adjective that refers to a quality of coziness, comfort, contentment, launched a new concept called Alt Scoops. The enterprise, known as a wholesaler of Swedish milk Oatly! and Fresh Drips Coffee from Amsterdam, ventures into the frozen dessert scene with a vegan alternative.
Oat is in. Using fiber-rich oat milk, the brand is a plant-based alternative to dairy ice cream. It is comprised of local ingredients such as La Trinidad strawberries from Baguio and Auro chocolate from Mindanao, to name a few, with imported ones, particularly the milk Oatly! And since there are no cows involved, the food is environment-friendly as well, perfect for those who are advocating for a green lifestyle. Alt Scoop is made here in the Philippines.
When we talk about “vegan,” the first thing that comes to mind is bland. In most cases, this seems to be the case, but not with this ice cream. In fact, you won’t even notice it’s vegan unless you check the label. Currently there are four variants, Burnt Caramel with Roasted Pecan, Choco Hazelnut, Dark Chocolate, and Strawberry. Each scoop of whatever flavor is guaranteed to be decadent, soft yet rich, with a hint of sweet.
The Burnt Caramel with Roasted Pecan is a buttery salted caramel delight with a pleasant crunch of roasted pecans. Made with Gianduia, the Choco Hazelnut is deeply nutty and luxuriantly dark. Dark Chocolate, on the other hand, has a bit more bitterness to it, crafted as it is from Auro’s award-winning couverture 77 percent dark chocolate. The single origin cacao beans sourced from Davao farmers shine through. Last, but definitely not the least, is the Strawberry with a generous amount of the seed-studded red fruit. The taste, as one would expect, is tangy due to the fresh Cordillera strawberries that make up almost half of the pint. More flavors will be released by mid-April, according to Patricia Coronel of Hygge.
“We’d like to think we have provided a vegan ice cream that doesn’t compromise on quality and taste, while being a way more sustainable option,” says Patricia. “We explain to customers how being more sustainable now doesn’t have to be different or tastes different. So now, they’re faced with choosing a product that is more sustainable and tastes even better than dairy ice cream.” Everything about this ice cream is good, and those who’ve tried it would agree.
You won’t even notice it’s vegan unless you check the label… Each scoop of whatever flavor is guaranteed to be decadent, soft yet rich, with a hint of sweet.
The company plans to launch more products under Hygge such as granolas and chocolate coins. “We see a huge potential in the ice cream market, so our main focus is to expand our products and flavors in the frozen desserts category,” says Patricia. “We’re also looking at doing other forms such as Alt Pops (popsicles) in the future.” We’re looking forward to more of these products in the future.
For now, one can purchase Alt Scoops via the Hygge Beverage Co. website or through Lazada Fresh by the end of March, as well as from resellers like Real Food PH and The Vegan Grocer.
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