Butterfinger, Baby Ruth and 100 Grand Launch Ice Cream Bars
HOSPITALITY
Wells Enterprises and Ferrero bring iconic candy bars to freezer aisle with texture-focused frozen treats now available nationwide.
Wells Enterprises and Ferrero North America launched three new ice cream bars based on popular candy brands: Butterfinger, Baby Ruth, and 100 Grand. The products are now available nationwide, responding to what Datassential's 2026 Trends Report identifies as a consumer shift toward texture-driven indulgence.
The launch brings candy bar textures to frozen desserts. Each ice cream bar is built around the signature characteristics that made its candy counterpart recognizable, with real ice cream and layered components designed to deliver distinct sensory experiences.
Three Distinct Products
The Butterfinger Ice Cream Candy Bar features Butterfinger-flavored ice cream with crispy peanut butter crunch and a chocolatey coating. The product aims to replicate the crispy, crunchy peanut butter experience of the original candy bar in frozen form.
Baby Ruth Ice Cream Candy Bar offers chewy nougat-flavored ice cream with whole roasted peanuts and caramel ribbons, encased in a chocolatey shell. The bar combines multiple textures including chew, crunch, and caramel.
The 100 Grand Ice Cream Candy Bar delivers caramel-flavored ice cream embedded with crispy crunchies, finished with an additional caramel layer beneath a chocolatey shell.
Strategy Behind the Launch
"The ice cream bar category has long been defined by simplicity, including smooth coatings, uniform textures, and straightforward formats," said Isabella Chia, Chief Marketing Officer at Wells Enterprises. "With Butterfinger, Baby Ruth, and 100 Grand, we didn't just translate a candy bar into a frozen format. We engineered each bar from the inside out."
The launch represents a brand extension strategy for Ferrero, which owns the candy brands. Catherine Bertrac, Senior Vice President Marketing for Kinder and FMC North America at Ferrero, positioned the products as meeting existing fans in a new occasion while introducing the brands to new consumers.
Market Context
Datassential's 2026 Trends Report names texture one of the year's top food trends, describing it as reshaping how consumers think about indulgence. The report suggests that layers of crunch and chew are rising in consumer preference across food categories.
Wells Enterprises, the largest privately held ice cream manufacturer in the United States, produces more than 200 million gallons of ice cream per year. The company is headquartered in Le Mars, Iowa, and operates as an independent company within the Ferrero Group. Its signature brands include Blue Bunny, Halo Top, Bomb Pop, and Blue Ribbon Classics.
Ferrero North America entered the U.S. market in 1969 and has grown to more than 5,400 employees across 15 plants and warehouses and eight offices. The company expanded its portfolio through acquisitions that added brands including Butterfinger, Crunch, Keebler, Famous Amos, and Mother's Cookies.
Product Details
All three ice cream bars are sold in six-packs at a suggested retail price of $5.99. The products are made with real ice cream and contain peanuts. They are available in the frozen treat aisle at retailers nationwide.
For more information about the products, consumers can visit doubletreatyourself.com.