Breyers Ice Cream and Frozen Dairy Desserts

Breyers offers a wide variety of ice cream and frozen desserts. The texture, flavor, and ingredients are similar to other brands in the marketplace. Even the brand name is often confused by one of its top competitors: Dreyer’s (a Nestle brand).

This food review provides a detailed overview of Breyers sweet dairy treats. It includes an explanation of the difference between ice cream and frozen dairy desserts, an analysis of calories by macronutrient, and the ingredients for many of the brand’s most popular flavors.

Breyers Ice Cream vs Frozen Dessert

Is It Ice Cream?

The first thing to note is not all of the containers in your grocer’s Ice Cream freezer is actually ice cream. At least not as it’s defined by the USDA.

Ice cream is made primarily with 100% real dairy products, which may include milk, cream, milk powder, and whey. It may also include other additives that act as stabilizers, emulsifiers, and flavoring agents.

By comparison, other frozen dessert options look like ice cream and taste similar to ice cream, but are made with various other ingredients, including oils.

Screenshot of list of ingredients in Breyers Rocky Road dessert. — Ingredients in Rocky Road frozen dairy dessert.

Moreover, even if the desserts share some of the same ingredients as real ice cream, the dominant ingredients in frozen desserts that don’t qualify as ice cream are often added sugars, water, gums, or a type of oil.

Breyers Butter Pecan dessert contains corn syrup, peanut oil, coconut oil, and carob bean gum.
Haagen-Dazs vanilla ice cream contains only five ingredients, including cream, skim milk, and eggs.
OREO Dessert Sandwiches contain dairy product solids, skim milk, coconut oil, corn syrup, and other ingredients such as guar gum and cellulose gum.

Cartons of Breyers ice cream and frozen desserts. — Ice cream and frozen dessert

Standards for Ice Cream

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there are certain grades and standards that must be met in order for a product to be labeled as “Ice Cream.”

The standards for ice cream include the following:

Contain 1.6 pounds of total solids per gallon
Weigh no less than 4.5 pounds to the gallon
Contain 20% or more total milk solids, of which at least 10% is milkfat
Whey cannot exceed 25% of the milk solids not fat, by weight

Additional standards apply when optional bulky ingredients such as cocoa solids, flavors, or sweeteners are added.

Marketed as Frozen Dairy Dessert

Food products that do not meet such standards cannot be labeled as Ice Cream.

Breyers uses the term “Frozen Dairy Dessert” for many of its products, including Vanilla Fudge Twirl, Extra Creamy Vanilla, and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough flavors.

Breyers Summary Nutrition Facts by Flavor

Breyers ice cream and frozen dairy desserts do have a couple of nutrition facts in common.

Serving size is 2/3 cup for all flavors. However, net weight varies from 78 grams to 91 grams.
The amount of protein per serving is 2 grams to 3 grams, depending on the flavor.

Use the following table to compare calories, fat, carbs, and added sugars in many of Breyers top ice cream and frozen dessert flavors.

Nutritional Information by Flavor

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Flavor	Type	2/3 Cup	Calories	Fat	Carbs	Added Sugars
French Vanilla	Ice Cream	85g	180	10g	21g	13g
Vanilla Chocolate	Ice Cream	87g	170	9g	21g	15g
Vanilla Chocolate Strawberry	Ice Cream	87g	160	8g	20g	14g
Natural Vanilla	Ice Cream	88g	170	9g	19g	14g
Coffee	Ice Cream	78g	140	4g	23g	12g
Chocolate Truffle	Ice Cream	91g	200	8g	30g	17g
Chocolate Chip	Dairy Dessert	89g	170	7g	26g	14g
Black Raspberry Chocolate	Dairy Dessert	89g	180	5g	30g	16g
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough	Dairy Dessert	89g	190	7g	30g	15g
Rocky Road	Dairy Dessert	90g	190	7g	29g	14g
Cookies & Cream	Dairy Dessert	80g	190	6g	29g	17g
Chocolate Pretzel Swirl	Dairy Dessert	81g	180	8g	27g	10g
Vanilla Fudge Twirl	Dairy Dessert	90g	150	4.5g	26g	13g
Extra Creamy Vanilla	Dairy Dessert	81g	140	4.5g	24g	14g
Butter Pecan	Dairy Dessert	83g	170	8g	22g	10g
Double Chocolate Brownie Batter	Dairy Dessert	82g	180	7g	29g	16g
Extra Creamy Chocolate	Dairy Dessert	81g	140	4.5g	23g	13g
CarbSmart Coffee Cookie Crunch	Dairy Dessert	81g	120	6g	17g	2g

Calories

Total calories in Breyers ice creams and frozen dairy desserts vary by flavor. The total ranges from 120 to 200 calories per serving.

Calories by Macronutrient

Carbohydrates contribute the highest proportion, up to nearly 70%, of total calories.

Fat makes up between one quarter to one half of the total calories. And approximately 4% to 8% of calories is from protein.

SUMMARY OF CALORIES BY MACRONUTRIENT PER SERVING

Total calories vary by flavor
Most of the calories are derived from carbohydrates (including added sugars)
Fats contribute 25% to 50% of total calories
Protein contributes up to 8% of total calories

List of ingredients in ice cream vs frozen dairy dessert. — ^{Breyers ice cream ingredients vs frozen dairy dessert ingredients}

Breyers Ingredients and Allergens

As noted above, the ingredients used for products labeled and marketed as Ice Cream must adhere to standards set by the USDA. This is apparent from Breyers use of the term “Frozen Dairy Dessert” for products that do not qualify as ice cream.

The frozen dessert terminology is not unique to Breyers. It’s used by OREO, Dreyer’s, Blue Bunny, and Klondike, among many other brands.

Breyers ice cream generally contains fewer ingredients compared to the alternative dessert option.

For example, here is a comparison of the ingredients between two of the brand’s vanilla flavored treats: Natural Vanilla (its original vanilla ice cream) and Extra Creamy Vanilla (a vanilla-flavored frozen dairy dessert).

Comparison of Ingredients

Ingredient	Natural Vanilla Ice Cream	Extra Creamy Vanilla Dairy Dessert
Milk	Yes	—
Cream	Yes	Yes
Sugar	Yes	Yes
Natural Flavor	Yes	Yes
Tara Gum	Yes	Yes
Skim Milk	—	Yes
Corn Syrup	—	Yes
Water	—	Yes
Whey	—	Yes
Mono and Diglycerides	—	Yes
Guar Gum	—	Yes
Carob Bean Gum	—	Yes
Annatto	—	Yes
Vitamin A Palmitate	—	Yes

Container of Breyers natural vanilla flavored ice cream. — Natural Vanilla ice cream contains 170 calories per serving.

Ingredients and allergens vary by flavor. The following chart provides a summary of ingredients in popular Breyers ice cream flavors and Breyers frozen desserts.

Ingredients by Flavor

CarbSmart Coffee Cookie Crunch Dessert

Skim Milk, Cream, Maltitol Syrup, Water, Polydextrose, Coconut Oil, Glycerin, Coffee Extract, Whey, Sugar, Dutched Cocoa, Soluble Corn Fiber, Enriched Wheat Flour, Mono- and Diglycerides, Vegetable Oil (soybean, palm), Guar Gum, Carob Bean Gum, Dried Cane Syrup, Natural Flavor, Cocoa, Soy Lecithin, Corn Starch, Sodium Bicarbonate, Milk, Salt, Acesulfame Potassium, Sucralose.

Chocolate Truffle Ice Cream

Milk, Cream, Sugar, Dutched Cocoa, Corn Syrup, Coconut Oil, Whey, Canola Oil, Vegetable Gums, Mono and Diglycerides, Salt, Cocoa, Soy Lecithin, Natural Flavor, and Annatto.

Coffee Dessert

Skim Milk, Corn Syrup, Sugar, Water, Cream, Coconut Oil, Coffee Extract, Whey, Mono and Diglycerides, Guar Gum, Carob Bean Gum, Tara Gum, Annatto, and Natural Flavor.

Cookies & Cream Dessert

Milk, Liquid Sugar, Sugar, Wheat Flour, Cream, Corn Syrup, Palm Oil, Skim Milk, Whey, Dutched Cocoa, Natural Flavor, Salt, Baking Soda, Soy Lecithin, Mono- and Diglycerides, Carob Bean Gum, Guar Gum, Vitamin A Palmitate, and Tara Gum.

Double Chocolate Brownie Batter Dessert

Skim Milk, Corn Syrup, Sugar, Fructose, Coconut Oil, Dutched Cocoa, Enriched Flour, Cream, Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Corn Oil, Whey, Cocoa, Palm Oil, Molasses, Butter, Soybean Oil, Mono and Diglycerides, Natural Flavor, Guar Gum, Soy Lecithin, Carob Bean Gum, Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Bicarbonate, and Salt.

Extra Creamy Vanilla Dessert

Skim Milk, Sugar, Cream, Corn Syrup, Water, Whey, Mono and Diglycerides, Guar Gum, Carob Bean Gum, Tara Gum, Natural Flavor, Annatto, Vitamin A Palmitate.

French Vanilla Ice Cream

Milk, Cream, Sugar, Corn Syrup, Egg Yolks, Whey, Vegetable Gums, Mono and Diglycerides, Natural Flavor, Annatto, Salt.

Natural Vanilla Ice Cream

Milk, Cream, Sugar, Tara Gum, and Natural Flavor.

Vanilla Chocolate Strawberry Ice Cream

Milk, Cream, Sugar, Water, Strawberries, Whey, Dutched Cocoa, Tara Gum, and Natural Flavor.

Vanilla Fudge Twirl Dessert

Skim Milk, Corn Syrup, Water, Sugar, Fructose, Coconut Oil, Whey, Cream, Dutched Cocoa, Vegetable Gums, Mono and Diglycerides, Salt, and Natural Flavor.

Vegetable gums include one or more of the following: carob bean, tara bean, and/or guar gum.
Annatto is generally used as a coloring agent.
Dutched cocoa is processed with alkali to reduce the natural acidity and bitterness of natural cocoa.
Liquid Sugar used in the Cookies & Cream flavored desert is made with sugar and water.

Nutrition facts, prices, and ingredients are based on available information as of the date of publication. Restaurants and food manufacturers may change recipes or formulations without notice. Check package labels and ask the product manufacturer or restaurant for the most up-to-date information. Unless otherwise stated, %DV is based on a 2,000 calorie diet. All reports and reviews published on this site are for informational purposes only. NutritionandIngredients.com does not provide healthcare advice or dietary recommendations. Always consult your licensed physician for any healthcare or dietary advice.