Control of the supply chain, use of non-polluting gases, waste reduction and encouragement of increasingly green practices and sustainable policies, from production to the final product: the ice cream industry is paying more and more attention to the green revolution. An example are the ice cream shop window companies that for years, also thanks to stringent European regulations, have been working to improve their ecological footprint.

The Portuguese Tensai, for example, focuses on a green and sustainable approach, as explained by marketing director Hugo Patricio: “All our products have a reuse of natural resources according to the logic of the circular economy. We are able to manage, control and recycle all the plastic we have used in our products with 0% waste, thanks to an internal industrial complex dedicated to the injection, extrusion and recycling of plastic. We are investigating new ways to increase the use of greener and environmentally friendly components in our equipment, such as efficient compressors and increasingly efficient insulation materials, but also electronic controls that allow us to monitor energy consumption and minimize fluctuations of temperature".

The green approach also concerns the personalized requests of particularly attentive customers, which have allowed the development of even less impactful products.

All news that the company will bring to Host in October: "With an increase in sales in 2020 - 85% in exports - we were able to maintain the business without resorting to layoffs, strengthening the workforce instead. It is therefore with a certain optimism that we will present our company and products at the exhibition, hoping that it will be a great opportunity to directly contact more companies interested in working with us. After more than a year, we hope this is the beginning of some changes in HoReCa, a sector severely affected by the pandemic. We look forward to this moment as a means of increasing sales and optimism. We will present an integrated solution of cold storage equipment and plastic chairs, a strategic decision to increase the offer of highly requested products, focused on the same supplier, with an optimization process in procurement and logistics".

The Internet of Things also goes towards eco-sustainability, as explained by Enzo de Serafino, CEO of Frigomeccanica: "The man-machine connection makes work less heavy and more technological, it sends push notifications in the event of an interruption in the cold chain that avoids waste and improve working conditions, allowing you to arrive in the shop with the window already cold".

Another major issue is that of ecological gases with a low greenhouse effect, mandatory for European law from 2022. "We are experimenting with gases that comply with the new regulations and we have a cart to bring ice cream to outdoor places, in line with current demands".

"For us, sustainability means producing shop windows that consume less energy, good for the environment and the income. All this while safeguarding the ice cream and therefore the health of the customers, but also the health of the workers thanks to the ergonomic design, which ensures ease of cleaning and hygiene ”says Simone Andreani, IFI Business Development Manager.