Nestlé Ice Cream Announces 2.8% Price Hike in Israel Starting December
Froneri Israel, distributor of Nestlé ice cream brands, announced a 2.8% average price hike for select products starting December 1, 2026, citing ongoing supply chain and input cost pressures.
Israeli consumers are facing another price hike, this time in the frozen treats sector. Froneri Israel, the manufacturer and distributor of Nestlé ice cream brands in the country, announced today (Monday) to retail chains and merchants that a new price increase will take effect on December 1, 2026. According to the company's notification, the wholesale price list for select products will be adjusted upward by an average of approximately 2.8%.
The company justified the move as an unavoidable step driven by ongoing inflationary pressures throughout the supply chain. "Following continuous increases in input costs, shipping expenses, and rising manufacturing costs, we are forced to moderately update the retailer price list for some of our products by an average of 2.8%, which only partially compensates for the overall price surges," the company stated.
Although Froneri specified that the update applies to only part of its catalog, Nestlé's product portfolio in Israel relies heavily on some of the market's strongest and best-selling flagship brands. Retail sector estimates indicate that the price hike is expected to affect premium single-serve novelties—led by the Crunch and Extreme series, the classic Cookilida sandwich—as well as children's and fruit-based novelties such as La Frutta, the watermelon ice pop, Gumigam, and Hamshushim.
The price adjustment may also touch family-sized ice creams and multipacks, including the La Cremeria series and international brand novelties produced under franchise agreements, such as Milka and Oreo. Ultimately, final consumer prices are determined by retailers, but wholesale price increases are typically passed directly along to supermarket shelves.
For Nestlé and Froneri, this move represents a direct continuation of an ongoing trend, following a series of price hikes in recent years. In 2024, for instance, the company raised its prices twice: first in May—with an average increase of 6.3% largely attributed to soaring cocoa prices—and again six months later in December 2024, implementing another wave of increases ranging between 5% and 9%.
Nestlé is not operating in a vacuum, as the broader ice cream sector frequently tests consumer budgets through strategic timing. Ice cream manufacturers traditionally update their price lists precisely at the onset of winter. During this off-season period, when ice-cream consumption drops and public attention is relatively low, manufacturers dampen public outcry and quietly prepare the groundwork with distributors ahead of the upcoming spring and summer seasons.
This pricing strategy mirrors moves by major market competitor Strauss Ice Cream, which operates under Unilever's global ice cream division. Strauss previously hiked prices on its flagship products—including Magnum, Cornetto, Cremissimo, and even Bamba-adjacent and seasonal treats—by rates ranging from 9% up to 15% across various waves.
Alongside the two dominant market players, other manufacturers such as Feldmann Ice Cream and Ben & Jerry's have also implemented price adjustments of roughly 5% or more in recent years, citing sharp increases in core raw materials such as cream and sugar, alongside mounting labor and logistics expenses.
