Custom Ice Cream Tubs with Printed Lids

Picking a Capacity That Sells

Size is as much a pricing decision as a practical one. Small tubs suit single servings at events, hotel minibars and hospital cafés. Medium tubs are the classic take-home pint that sells in delis and farm shops. Larger tubs suit families and catering, and some makers use them for wholesale supply to restaurants.

Think about how much you can scoop or fill per batch, how much freezer space you have and what price point your customers expect. A range of two sizes is usually enough to start, with a single serve for impulse buys and a larger tub for planned purchases.

It also pays to think about filling. Scooping into a tub by hand at the counter is quick for small sizes, but larger tubs are usually filled straight from the batch freezer and levelled with a palette knife. Leave a little headspace below the rim so the lid seats cleanly and does not press into the surface, and so ripples of sauce are not smeared when the lid goes on. A test fill of a few sample tubs before a big order shows you exactly how much product each size really holds.

If you supply supermarkets or larger stockists, check their freezer shelf height before settling on a tall tub. A slightly wider, shorter design may sit better and show more of the lid. p3 The guide to measuring a product covers volume versus weight for fills.

Designing for a Frosted Freezer Door

Customers usually spot your tub through a glass door that may be misted with condensation, from a distance of a metre or more. That means the flavour name and brand need to be big, bold and in strong contrast. Pastel colours and fine illustrations look lovely in hand but can disappear in a freezer cabinet, so pair them with a clear, dark flavour name.

The lid is often the first thing a shopper sees in a chest freezer, so give it the brand and flavour rather than leaving it plain. In an upright freezer, the wall facing outward does the selling, so place the flavour name on more than one side of the tub.

Many makers use one wall design for every flavour and change only the lid, or add a coloured flavour band. That keeps print costs down and lets you introduce a new flavour without reprinting the whole range.

Some brands also print a short serving tip on the side, such as leaving the tub out for a few minutes before scooping, which customers appreciate. p3 Gift packs of several tubs go in our ice cream boxes for multi-packs.

Labels, Information and Practical Details

Ice cream packaging needs space for the product name, ingredients, allergens, weight or volume, storage instructions and your business details. Rather than printing all of this on every tub, many artisan makers print the brand and design, then add a flavour-specific label at filling time. It is flexible and avoids reprinting if a recipe changes.

If you do print information directly, keep it on the back wall and use a clean font size that is easy to read. A best before date is normally added by hand, stamp or label at filling.

Tamper-evident seals, such as a small sticker over the lid and wall, reassure shop customers that the tub has not been opened. They cost little and look professional. p2 Flavour labels are covered on our ice cream labels page, with freezer-grade adhesive.

Print and Finish Options

Full colour print suits illustrated designs, photographs of ingredients and bright patterns. Spot colours give an exact brand match and are economical on larger runs. A gloss finish brightens colours and helps the tub wipe clean after handling with wet or frosty hands, while a matt finish feels more natural and craft-led.

We can print the inside of the lid with a message, a serving suggestion or a prompt to follow you on social media. It is a small surprise that customers notice and often photograph.

If you sell across several shops, a printed batch area on the base makes stock rotation easier for retailers.

Test Fill a Sample Tub From the Batch Freezer

Tub capacities on a chart and tub capacities at your counter are different things, because a levelled fill from a batch freezer leaves headspace that a scoop does not. Ask for a few plain sample tubs in the two sizes you are considering, fill them as you will on the day, and weigh the result; that tells you the real pint and what to print as the weight. Check the lid seats without touching the surface.

Decide paper or clear lid next, since the lid does the selling in a chest freezer, and say how many flavours you will print; most makers keep one wall design and change the lid or add a flavour label. The custom quote arrives by email within one working day, with the minimum set per job so a limited flavour can run short.

The free proof shows the artwork wrapped round the tapered wall. Production takes 4 to 7 working days after approval and the nested tubs reach UK mainland addresses by free tracked delivery. Parlours that sell single scoops as well usually add small ice cream cups for scoops in the same print.