Cornetto unveils new ice cream flavours

UK – Cornetto, a brand of Unilever, has launched Cornetto Max, designed to meet Gen Z’s love of maximalism and indulgence, a core driver for one in five ice cream lovers globally.

The new cone takes Cornetto’s classic creamy and crunchy characteristics and elevates them to a premium, multi-sensory ice cream snacking experience.

The new product features a chocolatey disc topping, a fusion of two ice creams, a crunchy cone and layers of luxurious sauces.

And with consumer insights showing trends for nut and fruit flavours, it launched in two new flavour variants – Hazelnut and Chocolate and tropical Mango and Vanilla.

Cornetto’s Global Brand Lead, Hazal Kantman, said, “Cornetto is already one of Unilever’s most iconic ice cream brands. It’s a true heritage brand. But even icons need new news, especially to meet Gen Z’s evolving expectations.”

According to the company, Cornetto Max was designed to appeal to Gen Z’s love for maximalism, a trend where excess is embraced.

“Indulgence is a core driver for one in five ice cream lovers globally. But for Gen Z, in particular, more is more, in lifestyle, fashion and food. Cornetto Max taps into that,”Hazal added.

For 59% of these young consumers, indulgence comes in the form of regular ‘little treats’ that spark joy and connection and make premium experiences affordable. However, 65% also feel brands aren’t delivering the excitement they’re looking for.

“For Cornetto that’s an opportunity,” Hazal says. “Our ambition is that Cornetto Max provides a different combination of textures and flavours in every bite and delivers the excitement Gen Z craves.”

The science ice cream experience

The company stated that creating the multi-layered experience was a significant feat of engineering, especially as the team took the product from idea to a production line in less than a year. The timings also ensured Cornetto Max could be scaled and market-ready for the summer’s ice cream season.

“It was a technical challenge to deliver a product with such defined layers,” said Hazal. “Combining two distinct ice creams with a sauce centre and chocolatey layer on top requires a high level of precision, not just in terms of R&D formulation and specification but also in how it’s executed on the manufacturing line to ensure consistency in texture, flavour combination and visual appeal at scale.

She said that many parts of the Cornetto family had contributed to the project. They had collaborated with specialist chocolate supplier Barry Callebaut to develop custom chocolatey discs that would give Cornetto Max’s top layer a premium mouthfeel.

She explained that engineers at Colworth’s Advanced Prototype Engineering Centre had used AI to test and refine new processes, and had employed 3D printers to produce nozzles capable of creating the new layers of ingredients in Cornetto Max’s updated design.

She also mentioned that factory teams in Caivano, where the original Cornetto ice cream was made, as well as those in Çorlu, had played a role in developing the new production line used for Cornetto Max.

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