Japanese Ice Cream Spreads to the World

During Japan’s hot summers, people of all ages seek to cool off by stepping into their local convenience store, and perusing the vast selection of intriguing ice cream and popsicle options, most of which will be new and unfamiliar to visitors to Japan. To understand Japanese ice cream culture we spoke with Hiroyuki Fukutome, more commonly known as Iceman Fukutome.

The “ice cream specialist” has always loved the frozen dessert, but his fascination evolved from the near-universal love of a child for all that is sweet to a deeper interest into all the steps involved in bringing Japan’s vast variety of iced treats to the market, leading him to research the history of Japan’s ice cream makers, their strengths and unique technology, the various factories where the treats are made, and more.

Japanese ice creams are quite a unique genre compared to Western favorites. There is a wide range of unusual flavors, such as red bean, matcha green tea and black sesame, and companies constantly come up with one-of-a-kind treats, bringing together popular snacks and combining them with ice cream into something completely new. Overall milk and cream-based products tend to be less sweet, while popsicles and sherberts often have a higher fruit content and brighter flavor.

Convenience stores, of which there are about 55,657 in Japan as of March 2024, are one of the most important sales routes for ice cream companies, particularly for seasonal or limited-edition treats. According to Fukutome, “Japan’s ice cream sales cycle is the most rapid in the world, with new options and flavors appearing seemingly weekly.”

Inspired by this ever-changing carousel of his favorite food, Fukutome started a website dedicated to convenience store ice creams, Conveniice, in 2014. As he samples upwards of 1000 different ice creams each year, there is no doubt of his vast understanding of not only the evolution and trends of the market, but also of the dessert’s roots in Japan.

Despite its current popularity, ice cream is a relative newcomer to Japan. “The first examples of the frozen sweet appeared in 1869 in the port city of Yokohama, at an ice cream shop called Korimizuya. Due to the difficulty in acquiring the ice needed to make it, which had to be shipped all the way from Boston, at the time ice cream was a true luxury, supposedly costing around the modern equivalent of 8000 yen for one serving,” Fukutome shares. “Naturally, flavoring options were also much simpler than what consumers are used to today, being a rather plain concoction of milk, sugar, ice and cornstarch.”

During the Taisho period (1912-1926) the purveying of locally sourced ice and innovations in technology allowed ice cream to become a special, but no longer wallet-busting, option. People would treat themselves to a bowl of ice cream at one of the “parlors” that sprung up in fashionable parts of town. When having a refrigerator became common in households in the 1960s, this is when we see the ice cream become to more democratic treat it is today, and the first hints of the year-round boom in popularity that came hand in hand with the rise of convenience stores.

Fukutome notes that due to the difficulty of importing ice cream to Japan, the country has “a rather unique, self-contained ecosystem, with mainly domestic companies fulfilling around 90 percent of the frozen dessert needs of the population.” Although new varieties appear and disappear in rapid succession, there are a number of long-time favorites that have withstood the tests of time for decades.

One of the oldest, and perhaps most surprising for those unfamiliar with Japanese sweets, is the Azuki Bar. Created in 1973 by Imuraya, a company originally known for their wagashi traditional sweets, this simple ice bar’s main ingredient is azuki red beans, along with sugar, salt and syrup. “Their knowledge of this traditional Japanese sweets ingredient really sets them apart, and no other company is able to get the same smooth, even consistency they create using their proprietary technology,” Fukutome says.

Another staple of Japanese summer are Gari Gari Kun, created in 1981 by ice cream manufacturer Akagi Nyugyo, who sought to create a more kid-friendly version of one of their popular products. The result is a shaved ice treat that children can enjoy one-handed while playing, further enhanced by the popsicle sticks that show if you have won a prize. “The secret to their success is a combination of playfulness and high technical skill,” Fukutome points out. “The playfulness comes out in experimenting with truly unusual flavors like corn soup or napolitan (a popular ketchup-laced pasta dish), while their technical skills are clear in the juicy flavorings, such as a popular pineapple flavor, and ability to closely control the mouthfeel of the ice.”

But it is not just popsicle-style ices that are available, as proven by the deep love of consumers for Lotte’s creamy Yukimi Daifuku, ice cream wrapped in a surprisingly soft layer of mochi. This intriguing treat thwarted convention, as it was created to be enjoyed during the winter, rather than the more obvious summer months. As mochi is often enjoyed in Japan during the winter months, the idea of combining it with ice cream was novel and exciting. Another creative option is the Itachoco bar, which resembles a traditional bar of chocolate. This playful and delicious confection is produced by a snack company, and they wanted to focus on the mouthfeel of the chocolate bar. Fukutome says that sweets lovers can look forward to an increase in creative ice cream variations that play on expectations, incorporating aspects of snacks or other styles of desserts.

Fukutome also shared a number of his other personal recommendations for those trying Japanese ice creams for the first time during a casual tasting session with international sweets lovers. A participant from China happily crunched down on an Itachoco bar, noting how the crunchy texture of a chocolate bar and milky smoothness of the ice cream sandwiched inside create a unique combination of textures and flavors. Another participant from Taiwan got to sample the Biscuit Sand ice cream sandwich, and marveled at how the cookie part remained crunchy and complemented the rich vanilla flavor of the ice cream. She also tried Yukimi Daifuku and remarked on the impressive milkiness of the ice cream and how the mochi remained soft without being sticky.

While exports of Japanese ice creams are increasing, the best way to really enjoy the vast diversity of local frozen treats is during a visit to the country, by stopping at a convenience store. “But remember that ice cream in Japan is often ichi-go ichi-e (once in a lifetime)” Fukutome reminds us, “if you see something you want to try, go for it, as it may not be there the next time you stop by!”