Häagen-Dazs Launches Artisan Ice Cream

American ice-cream giant Häagen-Dazs has teamed up with several artisan food companies across the US to create six new ice-cream flavours.

The new iterations, available to consumers from April 2015, include Banana Rum Jam, made with sugar-coated bananas, rum, lime and vanilla beans, and based on the Drunken Monkey Jam from New-York jam shop, The Jam Stand. The brand has also turned New York bakery The Good Batch's Ginger Molasses Cookie recipe into an ice cream made from a blend of vanilla cinnamon and soft-baked cookie.

Häagen-Dazs's partnership with small local businesses is an unusual move for a global brand, but reflects the consumer demand for more personalised and locally produced food products.

The ice-cream brand is known for its innovative flavour combinations. Last year, its Japanese arm launched two vegetable-based savoury ice creams in Carrot Orange and Tomato Cherry flavours. For more on this, see Häagen-Dazs's Veggie Ice Cream.

The ice-cream industry has seen many examples of flavour innovation in recent months, as brands appeal to adventurous consumers. For more on this, see Extreme Ice Cream, Colour-Changing Ice Cream and The Ice Cream Dream.