GB Glace
GB Glace is Sweden's largest ice-cream brand, tracing its origins to the 1942 formation of Glace-Bolaget.
Last updated October 16, 2026
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Overview
GB Glace is a Swedish ice-cream brand whose corporate origins date to the creation of Glace-Bolaget in 1942. The business emerged from a consolidation of earlier Swedish ice-cream operations, including the ice-cream department of Mjölkcentralen and the Stockholm producer Choklad-Thule, which joined to acquire Alaska Glace. Its formation came during a period when ice cream was developing from a seasonal specialty into a mass-market food in Sweden. The company’s roots reach back to the early Swedish ice-cream industry. Mjölkcentralen began producing ice cream in the mid-1930s after Eric Wilhelm Hanner studied production methods abroad and persuaded the dairy organization to use surplus milk fat for a new product line. Its ice cream was sold under the Puck name. Other producers, including Alaska Glace and Igloo Glace, also operated in the Stockholm area, while regional dairy-linked manufacturers developed across the country. Competitive pressure and industry consolidation eventually brought several of these businesses into the Glace-Bolaget network. GB expanded substantially during the postwar growth of ice cream consumption. In 1955, demand increased sharply as ice cream became a mainstream Swedish product. The company expanded output and temporarily imported product from Denmark. In 1957, it opened a large factory in Flen, which became an important manufacturing site. During the 1960s and early 1970s, GB absorbed or combined with a series of regional manufacturers, including Arla Glass, Cupglass, Freja Glass, Nordan Glass, Solglass, Malmö Glass, Åhus Glass and Strands Glass. These transactions helped establish nationwide distribution, including coverage of southern Sweden and northern production capacity. Ownership and corporate identity changed over time. Glace-Bolaget merged with Trollhätteglass in 1973, making Unilever a partner in the enlarged company. Arla later sold the business to Unilever, while retaining a minority stake for a period. Under Unilever ownership, the Flen plant was extensively rebuilt. Although the legal and operating company had originally been called Glace-Bolaget, the GB Glace consumer name had become so familiar that the company adopted GB Glace as its name in 1991. It entered Finland in 1994, although a subsequent attempt to establish a comparable position in Norway was unsuccessful. Unilever acquired full ownership in 1996, and GB Glace adopted the heart symbol used across Unilever's international ice-cream businesses in 1998. The brand has operated within a portfolio model, selling established Swedish products alongside products associated with Unilever's broader ice-cream system. Its best-known lines include Nogger and the controversial Nogger Black variant, while the wider historical portfolio also reflects the Puck brand and other products developed through the Swedish industry’s consolidation. In Finland, Unilever integrated GB Glace's operations with those of Ingman Ice Cream after acquiring Ingman in 2011; by 2013, GB Glace was no longer used as a brand there. GB Glace remains principally associated with the Swedish market and with mass-market packaged ice cream. Its history combines local dairy-industry origins, regional manufacturing consolidation, Unilever's international brand architecture and the continuing importance of recognizable Swedish product names. GB Glace is primarily associated with the Swedish market and large-scale packaged ice cream. Its history combines local dairy-industry origins, regional manufacturing consolidation, Unilever's international brand architecture, and the continued importance of well-known Swedish product names.
History
Ice cream production in Sweden developed during the late 1920s and early 1930s. Stockholm had producers such as Choklad-Thule, while the Uppsala company Fyris manufactured ice cream before entering bankruptcy in 1933. Pressbyrån subsequently began making ice cream with Fyris's former equipment, laying the foundation for Alaska Glace in Stockholm. A major early institutional producer was Mjölkcentralen, commonly known as MC. In 1934, Eric Wilhelm Hanner returned from studies of ice-cream production in Denmark, Switzerland, the United States and other countries. He persuaded MC's management that ice cream could make productive use of surplus milk fat. MC built a factory on its Stockholm premises, with production beginning before the 1935 season. The first MC product was Puck. In the same period, Igloo Glace began production in Märsta. Competition among producers later contributed to a combination of Igloo and MC operations. By the end of 1941, Stockholm still had four ice-cream manufacturers. In 1942, MC's ice-cream department and Choklad-Thule combined to acquire Alaska Glace. The resulting enterprise was named Glace-Bolaget, or GB. Eric W. Hanner became its first chief executive and remained in that role until retiring in 1972. Wartime rationing created immediate production problems: fats and other ingredients were restricted, forcing GB to reduce fat content and use substitutes. The decisive expansion came after the Second World War. Ice cream reached mass-market status in Sweden in 1955, and GB had to increase production while importing some product from Denmark to meet demand. In 1957, the company opened a large factory in Flen. During the 1960s, consolidation transformed GB from a Stockholm-rooted producer into a national network. Unilever acquired competitors Gille-Glace and Trollhätteglass in 1962. In 1963, six dairy-owned businesses—Arla Glass in Gothenburg, Cupglass in Örebro, Freja Glass in Gävle, Nordan Glass in Luleå and Solglass in Karlstad, together with the associated regional consolidation—were brought into GB. The company reached southern Sweden in 1966 through combinations with Malmö Glass and Åhus Glass. In 1972 it acquired Strands Glass AB, including a factory at Öjebyn near Piteå. In 1973, Glace-Bolaget merged with Trollhätteglass, and Unilever became a partner. Arla decided to sell Glace-Bolaget to Unilever in 1985 but retained a ten-percent interest at the time of the transaction. After Unilever took control, the Flen factory was substantially rebuilt and reopened. The business continued to be legally associated with the Glace-Bolaget name, but the GB Glace brand had become sufficiently prominent that the company changed its name to GB Glace in 1991. GB expanded into Finland in 1994, although its attempt to enter Norway did not succeed. At the beginning of 1996, Unilever completed the acquisition and GB Glace became wholly owned. In 1998, the brand changed its logo to incorporate the heart symbol used across Unilever's ice-cream brands, linking the Swedish identity to the company's international brand system. The brand also became involved in a public controversy in 2005. GB Glace launched Nogger Black, a new bar related to the existing Nogger product, whose name had been used since 1979 and referred to its nougat filling. The Centre against Racism and Related Intolerance criticized the product name and an advertisement featuring the phrase “Nogger + liquorice = heart.” The organization interpreted the presentation as evoking a racial slur and demanded that the campaign be withdrawn, threatening boycott advocacy. The controversy centered on naming and advertising rather than on a product-safety issue. Unilever acquired Finnish competitor Ingman Ice Cream in 2011. Its Finnish operations were integrated in 2013, after which GB Glace ceased to exist as a brand in Finland. The brand's principal historical and commercial identity remains Swedish. Its development illustrates the progression of Sweden's ice-cream sector from small regional manufacturers and dairy operations to a consolidated national brand operating within a multinational portfolio. Following the separation of Unilever's ice-cream business, the present owner is The Magnum Ice Cream Company.
- 2013
GB Glace brand withdrawn in Finland
[1]Following the integration of Ingman Ice Cream's operations, GB Glace ceases to exist as a brand in Finland.
- 2005
Nogger Black campaign controversy
[1]The launch advertising for Nogger Black is criticized by an anti-racism organization over perceived racial associations.
- 1998
Heart logo introduced
[1]GB Glace adopts the heart motif shared by Unilever's ice-cream brands.
- 1996
Full acquisition by Unilever
[1]GB Glace becomes a wholly owned Unilever subsidiary.
- 1994
Finnish market entry
[1]GB Glace enters Finland.
- 1991
Company name changes to GB Glace
[1]The corporate name is changed from Glace-Bolaget to GB Glace in recognition of the consumer brand's familiarity.
- 1985
Unilever takes control
[1]Arla sells Glace-Bolaget to Unilever while retaining a minority stake at the time.
- 1973
Unilever becomes a partner
[1]Glace-Bolaget merges with Trollhätteglass and Unilever joins the enlarged company.
- 1966
GB reaches southern Sweden
[1]Mergers with Malmö Glass and Åhus Glass extend GB's national presence.
- 1963
Regional dairy ice-cream companies merge with GB
[1]Several regional producers join GB, materially broadening its Swedish distribution footprint.
Products and positioning
A mainstream Swedish ice-cream brand combining familiar local products with the international portfolio and distribution capabilities of a global ice-cream group.
Ice-cream bar · 1979
Nogger
Nogger is a long-running GB Glace ice-cream product marketed since 1979. Its name is described as deriving from the product's nougat filling. The product became the base for the later Nogger Black variant and is among the brand's most recognizable named offerings.
Ice-cream bar · 2005
Nogger Black
Nogger Black was introduced as an addition to the established Nogger line. The product became notable not only for its licorice-related flavor positioning but also because its 2005 advertising campaign generated criticism from a Swedish anti-racism organization.
Ice cream · 1935
Puck
Puck was the early ice-cream product of Mjölkcentralen, whose production operation later became part of the history of Glace-Bolaget and GB Glace. It represents the dairy-sector origins of the Swedish business rather than a confirmed current GB Glace flagship.
Controversies
2005
Nogger Black advertising controversy
The launch of Nogger Black prompted criticism from Sweden's Centre against Racism and Related Intolerance, which regarded the name and advertising slogan as carrying a racial implication. The dispute concerned cultural sensitivity and advertising interpretation, not a reported food-safety problem.
Marketing campaigns
- 2005Nogger Black launch campaign
Sweden
GB Glace promoted the new Nogger Black bar with advertising that associated Nogger with licorice and used a heart symbol. The Centre against Racism and Related Intolerance argued that the product naming and presentation could be read as a racial reference.
Outcome. The organization called for the campaign to be withdrawn and urged a boycott if GB Glace did not act. The available reference does not establish whether the campaign was withdrawn.
Brand decisions
2011
Acquire Ingman Ice CreamM&ABackground
Unilever sought to consolidate its position in the Finnish ice-cream market.
Action taken
Unilever purchased Finnish competitor Ingman Ice Cream.
Aftermath
The Finnish operations were integrated in 2013 and GB Glace ceased to be used as a brand there.
1996
Complete the Unilever acquisitionM&ABackground
Unilever had been a partner in the business since 1973 and had taken control from Arla in 1985.
Action taken
Unilever acquired the remaining ownership interest, making GB Glace wholly owned.
Aftermath
GB Glace operated as part of Unilever's international ice-cream structure.
1991
Adopt the GB Glace nameStrategyBackground
Although the company had been established as Glace-Bolaget, GB Glace had become the better-known consumer-facing identity.
Action taken
The company changed its name to GB Glace.
Aftermath
The change aligned the corporate identity with the established Swedish brand.
Recent events
- 2011
Unilever acquires Ingman Ice Cream[1]
M&A
Unilever acquired Finnish competitor Ingman Ice Cream; related operations were later integrated and the GB Glace brand was discontinued in Finland.
- 1996
Unilever takes full ownership of GB Glace[1]
M&A
GB Glace became a wholly owned Unilever subsidiary after a period in which Unilever had been a partner and Arla had retained a minority interest.
- 1991
GB Glace adopts its current corporate name[1]
Other
The company changed its name from Glace-Bolaget to GB Glace because the consumer brand was already widely recognized.
- 1973
Unilever becomes a partner in the enlarged GB business[1]
M&A
Glace-Bolaget merged with Trollhätteglass, with Unilever joining the resulting company as a partner.
- 1957
GB opens a major factory in Flen[1]
Other
A large Flen factory was inaugurated as Swedish demand for ice cream expanded and GB increased its production capacity.
- 1942
Glace-Bolaget is formed through the consolidation of Swedish ice-cream businesses[1]
M&A · Other
Mjölkcentralen's ice-cream department and Choklad-Thule joined to acquire Alaska Glace and established Glace-Bolaget, the predecessor of GB Glace.
Sources1 sources
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