Around 1958, the Guangzhou Ice Factory, the predecessor of Guangzhou People's Food Factory, began to use its advantages in technology and equipment to produce ice cream. This was the beginning of the industrialized production of ice cream with large machines in Guangzhou's history. In the first few years, the ice cream produced by the ice factory only had the manufacturer's name but no brand.
Due to its long history, there are at least two theories about when Wuyang Ice Cream came out: According to the records in "Guangzhou City Chronicles", it is speculated that the founding of Wuyang Ice Cream should not be earlier than 1969; but Former old employees of Guangzhou People's Food Factory firmly believe that Wuyang Ice Cream existed before the Cultural Revolution, and the early 1960s should be the time when Wuyang Ice Cream came out. At that time, due to the high cost, the price of private ice cream cones ranged from a few cents to one dollar and a half, while the retail price of Wuyang Ice Cream cones was three cents and four cents, making the price highly competitive. At that time, the factory's technical personnel and master workers chose egg rolls to carry the ice cream, and they were all made by hand.
In the early 1960s, the market demand for Wuyang ice cream was increasing day by day. In the face of lack of funds, food factory employees took matters into their own hands to solve the problem of shortage of cold sources. They developed and produced 4 units with a production capacity of 200,000 kcal freezer.
During the Cultural Revolution, Wuyang Ice Cream was ordered to change its name because the "Wuyang" brand was considered by the government to have "feudal consciousness". It was restored only after the Cultural Revolution. In February 1986, Guangzhou People's Food Factory signed a joint venture contract with Guangdong International Food Co., Ltd. and Hong Kong Milk (Guangzhou Ice Cream) Co., Ltd. (now Milk International) to prepare for the establishment of Guangzhou Frozen Food Co., Ltd., located on Donghua South Road. . At that time, the fonts and colors of "Five Rams Ice Cream" and "Five Rams Ice Cream", and even the blue stripes underneath, were very similar to those of the Hong Kong Dairy Company, and the packaging styles were also very similar.
In 1988, Wuyang Ice Cream won the only gold medal in the cold drink category at the first China Food Expo. Wuyang ice cream products have won more than 30 quality product titles from Guangdong Province and Guangzhou City.
In June 1995, Swiss Nestlé Milk Holdings Co., Ltd. and Guangzhou People's Food Factory jointly established "Guangzhou Nestlé Milk Co., Ltd." with a total investment and registered capital of US$32.29 million and an operating period of 50 years.
In September 1997, Hong Kong Dairy Company sold 49% of its shares to Nestlé for US$40 million, thereby withdrawing from the ice cream and frozen product manufacturing industry. Since the "Milk Company" brand is deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, Nestlé Milk Hong Kong continues to use the term "Milk Company" and adds "Nestle" for identification.
Because the original joint venture partner Hong Kong Milk Company had sold its ice cream manufacturing business to Nestlé, on May 17, 1999, Guangzhou People’s Food Factory cooperated with Nestlé Co., Ltd. to operate Guangzhou Frozen Food Co., Ltd. through equity transfer. It became one of the operating companies invested by Nestlé Co., Ltd. in China, with 97% of the shares. It is administratively affiliated with Nestlé (China) Co., Ltd. and is exclusively managed by Nestlé China. After the acquisition, the "Wuyang Ice Cream" brand was retained, and it is closely related to the Nestlé ice cream series. Produced together. Ronald Houston (Hao Sijin) serves as the factory manager of Guangzhou Frozen Food Co., Ltd. Since December 2005, he has been the general manager of Guangzhou Frozen Food Co., Ltd. and the general manager of Guangzhou Nestlé Milk Co., Ltd.
After Nestlé’s joint venture with Wuyang, new products are launched every year, and Wuyang’s trademark is also consistent with Nestlé’s ice cream trademark: the three words “Wuyang Brand” in red are amp; shy; It is surrounded by a blue oval, and Nestlé is also written in red with a light blue trapezoid outside. The names and designs of some products are also very close to those of Nestlé Hong Kong. The packaging of the Qiqu series also maintains the comic design style of the Hong Kong Dairy Company. Compared with the Nestlé series of ice cream, the prices of the Wuyang series are more popular, and the prices have always been maintained at a low level. The company has also introduced advanced production lines, such as the Big Drum production line that produces Nestlé's core strategic product flower cores, and established a new product development laboratory to promote the development of new products.
Market data in 2006 shows that Wuyang brand ice cream increased by 23% in 2005 compared with previous years, and Nestle brand ice cream increased by 30%.
Nestlé and Wuyang brand ice cream products maintain their leading position in the market.
In 2008, Wuyang Ice Cream Factory moved to Yonghe Development Zone, and the old factory building remained vacant until 2010. Donghua South Road, where the ice cream factory is located, was outside the city center before the 1980s (nearby was the former Guangjiu Railway Station). Due to urban development, the area has been surrounded by residential houses and shops. Because the chemical equipment produced by the ice cream factory posed safety hazards to nearby residents, the company decided to relocate in 2008 and only retained an office opposite the old factory.
In August 2010, the annex building of the old Wuyang Ice Cream factory was demolished, and the main building was sold to the new owner, Guangzhou Light Industry and Trade Group, and began to be converted into a hotel. Completed in September 2011.
In July 2011, the prices of all Wuyang ice cream products increased, and the red bean ice cream that had been sold for 1 yuan for more than 20 years was also increased to 1.5 yuan.
In addition, Nestle has not established an official website for Wuyang Ice Cream.