Popsicle fans can breathe easy: Winnetou stays in the fridge

The popular frozen ice treat Winnetou has refreshed Switzerland since 1980. It is made in Goldach. Even if the colorful lollipop is beset by novelties, it does not disappear from the freezers.

TAGBLATT

By Rossella Blattmann

7/6/2018

Uff, once again is lucky. The Eastern Swiss Glacenostalgiker allowed us to breathe easier. After the "Tages-Anzeiger" reported a week ago that the Winnetou at the kiosks is increasingly difficult to obtain, there was a great fear that it will soon disappear completely from the market. But now it shows: Despite the icy cold competition in the refrigerated shelf, the classic will be available in the future.

The Winnetou is produced by Froneri in Goldach, formerly Frisco Findus. It is true that due to other new varieties of ice cream such as the Pirulo water glace or the Oreo sandwich, the Winnetou is sometimes less available than it used to be, says Andreas Rodel, Head of Marketing Glace at Froneri Switzerland. "But I can say with certainty: The Winnetou will never disappear."

3.5 million pieces per year

In the ice cream market it is important to introduce new products and to test how they arrive at the customers, Rodel says. In addition, the space in the cabinets of the kiosks is limited. It was inevitable that when launching a new product another, such as the Winnetou, would have to give way. "Ultimately, customer demand determines how the ice cream market develops, and which products the kiosks sell," Rodel adds. As a rule, after two to three years, one can determine whether a novelty such as the Oreo sandwich will establish itself in the long term.

"Every year we sell about 3.5 million pieces of Winnetou," says Rodel. Exact numbers give Froneri no out, but he could say that the number of sold copies varies from year to year and very weather-dependent. Why Winnetou is so popular with young and old, Rodel explains among other things, that not only little boys and girls, but also many adults who grew up with the ice cream, even today they like to eat a Winnetou.

The rocket flies over all of them

Rodel sees another reason for the success in the combination of different fruit flavors and textures. "The Winnetou consists of three different types of waterglace: apricot, pineapple and raspberry. And there is of course still the sweet chocolate on top, which brings an additional flavor and texture. "The Winnetou is also cheap. Even people on a small budget could therefore afford the Winnetou.

Although the Goldacher Winnetou sweetened treaat stays and hot summer days beyond Eastern Switzerland for 38 years: Number one in the Glacetruhe is the rocket, which is also produced by Froneri in Goldach. "With more than eight million pieces per year, the rocket is probably Switzerland's best-selling ice cream," says Rodel. Unlike the Winnetou, the rocket is above all a child's glacier, he adds.

The Winnetou is present in the local reserve

Since the Apollo 11 of Buzz Aldrin and Neil Armstrong landed on the moon in 1969 and made history, there is now the opportunity to buy the glace modeled on a real rocket in Switzerland. Unlike the Winnetou, however, the rocket is smaller, and it consists of only two, orange and pineapple, and not three flavors.

The "Tages-Anzeiger" writes that the Winnetou in the city of Zurich is very difficult to find. But in Winnetous home reservation it looks different. An inspection on Thursday morning in the town of Rorschach shows that in the kiosks between the city train station and the port, the Winnetou is easily available. "The Winnetou sells very well here," says Ursula Seitz from the Bäumlistorkel kiosk opposite the city train station. The bestseller was with her but not the rocket, says Seitz.

Also with Sabine Hüttenmoser from the kiosk next to the harbor buffet are Winnetous in the freezer. However, only in the kiosk inside. "In summer we have an additional, smaller ice box outside in front of the kiosk. Due to lack of space, we do not have Winnetous there, but especially novelties like the Oreo ice cream, "says Hüttenmoser.

Different ice cream prices

In the kiosk in the recently renovated Coop store on the market square, both the Winnetou and the rocket are among the bestsellers. "But the strawberry, vanilla and Schoggicornets and the Magnum are doing very well," says Deputy Sales Manager Rebecca König. The lactose-free ice cream of the Coop own brand and the coffee and cherry ice cream tubels were also very popular, adds König.

A price comparison shows that the Winnetou has different prices at the various Rorschacher kiosks. For example, it costs 1.50 francs at the Bäumlistorkel kiosk and 1.70 francs at the port. "The prices for our Glaces vary depending on the location and size of the respective sales outlet," says Lukas Mettler from Valora on request.