24 Jul GELATO FEVER: How China Turned Summer Into a Flavour Playground
This summer, China’s F&B sector isn’t just innovating on product , it’s innovating on flavour, format and occasion.
Gelato has become the season’s clearest signal: a category once confined to dessert shops is now reshaping how tea, dairy and snack brands compete for attention.
Gelato as a business signal, not a dessert trend
Gelato’s rise reflects a deeper shift in what Chinese consumers expect from F&B. According to Griffith Foods, 64.8% of consumers are tired of homogeneous flavours, and 64.3% of new products now lean on flavour innovation to stand out. Gelato answers that demand directly — familiar enough to feel comforting, novel enough to photograph and share. China’s gelato market is growing at a 17.6% CAGR ( iiMedia Research), and in the first five months of 2026 alone, six major tea beverage brands launched 31 ice cream products (Lanjinger News).
“ The tea-flavoured geelato was such a pleasant surprise! Every scoop was freshly made, super light and refreshing—perfect for summer.”—RedNote @狂炫乌龙茶
Decoding the fever: three brands leading the shift
- Chagee’s “Geelato” — the tea brand’s pop-up at the Aranya Theatre Festival introduced a whole-leaf-tea gelato, extending its signature flavour from drink to dessert format.
- Naisnow paired matcha gelato with fresh coconut water, layering richness onto a lighter, more refreshing drink format.
- Louxia recreated mango sticky rice as a drink, using vanilla gelato and mango-rice texture to bridge dessert and beverage.
Key takeaway for brands
Gelato is no longer a category , it’s a flavour platform. Brands that treat it as a format to build on, not just a product to sell, are the ones capturing attention this summer.
Contact us to learn more about F&B trends and consumer behaviour in China.
Tags: Gelato/ F&B trends / China/ Summer trends / Tea beverage
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