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Business & Tech

Nelson's Ice Cream: An Easy Scream for Some Good Ice Cream

As one of the last surviving manufacturing operations in Royersford, Nelson's Ice Cream adds to the historical and taste bud integrity of the town.

in Royersford has been making its own ice cream since before World War II, incorporating in 1946, with its freezer musts speaking for themselves through happy palates across Southeastern Pennsylvania.

“We make our ice cream right here in Royersford, preparing our mix from scratch,” president David Nelson said. “A lot of other ice cream producers buy their mix from someone else and then flavor it.”

But Nelson’s Ice Cream labors are all in-house, which is something unique today, especially in Royersford, as the business is one of the only manufacturing establishments still weaved into the community, and a food one at that.

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While there are a handful of companies known for producing ice cream around the region, Nelson’s Ice Cream is the closest to Philadelphia city limits still known for crafting its own mix from fresh milk, cream and flavoring ingredients, not using a pre-made mix before filling up container after container, which is mostly the mainstream habit now.

Today, the Nelson Family has had five generations together in the dairy industry then trailing into the ice cream business. Nelson’s great-grandfather Ellis and grandfather James started the in-town dairy in 1923 with Walnut Street and Main Street locations before the cows were sold off decades later.

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His son Patrick is a sales route driver, but David has been behind the scenes in almost every part of the business since 1988 when he became president after his father Donald retired.

The retail storefront of Nelson’s Ice Cream stands at 627 Main St., while the manufacturing plant producing more than 40 flavors today is at 651 Walnut St.

Michael LaMiaux runs the shop on Main Street, which opened in 1998.

Most of the milk and cream shipped into the plant is from surrounding dairies and also Delaware, with several hundred gallons of ice cream produced per hour from them.

The ice cream sells to stores in Allentown, Doylestown, West Chester, Downingtown, Morgantown and Philadelphia.

It’s also available at in Spring City, with the Kolb Family selling Nelson’s a small portion of the cream needed for efforts each week.

The variety of ice cream most swoon for with Nelson’s is their Dutch Farms line, which has an unchanged recipe involving 16 percent butterfat, leading to creamer ice cream well known and adored per scoop, packaged by hand.

“Most ice cream producers only use 10 percent butterfat because it’s cheaper,” Nelson said, adding that while the Dutch Farms line is more expensive, it sells well for a reason—because it’s just that good and is worth a little extra sacrifice from the wallet.

Some of the most popularly enjoyed flavors are classics like vanilla and chocolate alongside mint chocolate chip, black raspberry and butter pecan.

“Around Labor Day, we start making pumpkin ice cream,” Nelson said. “In September, October and November, it’s one of our top sellers.”

The season-ready pumpkin ice cream sells incredibly well in farm and country stores, Nelson said.

“TD Alfredo’s Pizzeria in Spring City has been a great client for years too,” Nelson said about dessert menu appearances.

The several dozen flavors of ice cream Nelson’s whips into shape started rolling around in higher numbers the 1970s and 1980s when the ice cream industry saw a spike in new flavor creations, Nelson noted.

Key lime pie and chocolate marshmallow are two of Nelson’s own personal favorites he makes.

“It’s hard to compete with larger ice cream companies,” Nelson said. “They make more in a day than we make in a couple of weeks.”

But even with knowing that, Nelson said he is confident that the taste of his family’s ice cream stands apart with its higher butterfat content per container, as it stirs to life a flavor and texture all its own and unique in today’s ice cream market.

It’s encouraging too that when people love Nelson’s Ice Cream, they find it hard not to make their feelings known, so raving about Nelson’s is fairly common in town.

“People light up when they find out you make ice cream,” Nelson said. “To them, it’s interesting to hear that you’re in the business.”

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