The maker of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream has revealed that sales of the sweet treat have declined due to the coronavirus crisis.

Manufacturer Unilever said it has taken a hit to its food service and ice cream businesses as Covid-19 has kept customers at home.

Good news for shoppers

However, there is good news for shoppers in the UK, with supermarket chains including Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury's slashing prices on a number of Ben & Jerry's products.

Analysis of the three supermarkets websites at 12pm on Thursday, April 23, revealed that a range of ice creams have been reduced in price.

It's not been confirmed when the prices were reduced, nor how long they will be stay low (prices may differ in other areas of the UK).

Asda have reduced the prices of these products to £2.50 (Previously £3.00)

  • Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Caramel Chew Chew Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Half Baked Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Netflix & Chilll’d Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Birthday Cake Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Cone Together Ice Cream

Tesco have reduced the prices of these products to £2.50 (Previously £4.50)

  • Ben & Jerry’s Netflix & Chilll’d Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Birthday Cake Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Caramel Chew Chew Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Vanilla Ice Cream Chocolate Waffle Cone Salted Caramel
  • Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Baked Alaska Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough Sandwich Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Karamel Sutra Core Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry's Sofa So Good Together Caramel and Chocolate Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream

Sainsbury's have reduced the prices of these products to £3.00 (Previously £4.00)

  • Ben & Jerry's Cookie Dough Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Chocolate Fudge Brownie Ice Cream 
  • Ben & Jerry’s Phish Food Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Caramel Chew Chew Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Half Baked Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s S'wich Up Cookie Dough Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Birthday Cake Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Baked Alaska Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Netflix & Chilll’d Ice Cream
  • Ben & Jerry’s Cone Together Ice Cream

Not all bad news for Unilever

Unilever - which also creates Dove soaps and Domestos - said it was buoyed by “household stocking” of “hygiene and in-home food products”, which drove strong sales in North America and Europe in March as the outbreak gathered pace.

It reported that underlying sales volumes were flat at 12.4 billion euros (£10.8 billion) over the three months to March.

Meanwhile, food and drink sales dipped as its food service arm was hit by restaurant closures.

It added that its out-of-home ice cream business, which includes sales at beaches, parks and cinemas, saw sales dented during the period, with further disruption expected during the key second quarter.

What have Unilever said?

Unilever chief executive Alan Jope said: “We have been able to maintain the supply of product and we are keeping our factories running through the many unpredictable challenges in local operating environments across our value chain.

“As the crisis hits countries around the world, we see upswings in sales of hygiene and in-home food products, combined with some household stocking, and near cessation of out-of-home consumption, which is particularly affecting our food service and ice cream business.

“We are adapting to new demand patterns and are preparing for lasting changes in consumer behaviour, in each country, as we move out of the crisis and into recovery.”