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Move over coffee shops, it is time to make room for ice cream cafes. An increasing number of people are paying more than 30 yuan ($3.85) for a scoop of ice cream as trendy ice cream cafes are becoming more frequent in China's big cities.

Now, eating ice cream is about being seen, and not about cooling down during the rising spring temperatures.

"Some of the ice cream habits of the Chinese today relate to the ability to pay for the luxury at trendy cafes," said Tue Tyge Moller, Vice-President of Danisco China, a Danish ingredients producer. Danisco produces food ingredients, that end up in cone ice or stick ice, the ones sold for 1-8 yuan (12 cents -$1).

Experts in the field estimate that Chinese people consume 2 litres of ice cream per capita, leaving them far behind the ice cream loving Americans who consume 19 litres. Still the growing group of affluent Chinese has made it a dream for local and foreign companies to be the ones to make the Chinese mainland really love ice cream.

When a mother in Shanghai gives her child an ice cream in the hot summer months, it is produced to take the exact same time to melt as the ice cream offered to a child in colder Northern Europe, ac-cording Moller.

Simply by adding the right ingredient, like natural seeds, the ice cream adjusts to local temperatures in order for the experience of eating a particular branded ice cream to be similar all over the world.

"An ice cream is also ad-justed to local tastes, since people in China have different tastes compared to the Italians or Americans," Moller said.

Some regions of the world prefer their ice cream with a natural flavour, others want it strong or sweet. Variations also hold for consistency.

A well-known luxury brand is American Haagen-Dazs which has about 30 cafes in China's largest cities, with 16 in Shanghai alone. The luxury monopoly may be challenged by Swiss Movenpick, owned by ice cream world leader Nestle. Movenpick is under-taking to break the ice for the luxury market.

"People are very keen on premium ice cream in China right now, less so on brand loyalty," Frank Li, Nestle's Regional General Manager for ice cream in Eastern China, said.

Movenpick started its Chinese mainland launch in 2006 by focusing on four and five star hotels and restaurants in Shanghai where the influence of European taste was already present.

The people behind Nestle also confess that many of the ice cream lovers are women who are concerned about their weight and health.

"The high quality small sizes give less guilt because these women can avoid too much sugar and fat," a spokesperson said.

(China Daily 03/14/2007 page3)