The world screams for this Ontario ice cream at international taste-testing competition

An iconic Canadian ice cream manufacturer is being recognized for having the best caramel ice cream in the world.

Chapman's Ice Cream, a family-owned dessert manufacturer in Markdale, Ont., beat 12 other international competitors at the International Ice Cream Consortium (IICC) in Italy last week.

"We were up with some heavyweights," said Ashley Chapman, chief operating officer of Chapman's. "The Italians make an incredible gelato and South America is home of dulce de leche."

"It was quite a shock to find out among all these products that we were by far the preferred caramel ice cream."

The company's Salty Caramel Crunch flavour received a first place award after 108 delegates at the conference voted in a blind taste test. Voters were to consider specific criteria including taste, creaminess and visual appearance. 

The Chapman's caramel flavour, which is part of the company's Super Premium Plus line, includes a salty caramel ripple, butter toffee pieces and caramel cookie bits mixed in a caramel ice cream base. 

Chapman said his team tried over 30 formulas before settling on the final Salty Caramel Crunch product, which first hit store shelves in 2023. 

"It truly is to-die-for," Chapman said. 

Chapman's took home two other awards at this year's IICC , including second place for Best Ice Cream with their cherry cheesecake flavour and bronze for their cold brew coffee flavour.

This isn't the company's first time winning awards at the conference. 

The IICC's blind taste test competition features a different flavour every year. Two years ago, Chapman's won first place for best chocolate ice cream.

Chapman says he feels nervous about next year's blind taste test flavour: vanilla. 

"It's the big one," said Chapman. "Everybody focuses on their vanilla as being one of the mainstays of the product line. People try hard for chocolate and they try hard for caramel, but nobody tries harder than the group for vanilla."

The company has five vanilla ice creams that they can consider, but Chapman says they now have to decide which to enter into the competition. 

For Canadians looking to try the company's newly-award winning caramel ice cream, Chapman says the best way to eat it is simple.

"All you need is a spoon and the container and you'll be fine," Chapman said.