The History of Ice Cream in New Zealand


Blix

The History of the Blix Ice Cream Company, 1924 - 1937

by Esme Peddie (daughter of Fred Blick)

Early in 1924 my parents Fred and Mary Blick saw the potential in South Invercargill to start up a small business. A section was purchased on the corner of Ythan and Scandrett Streets and a house with shop attached built by Blue Bros. It was a mixed business, although we did not stock milk and cream. Groceries and all associated lines were stocked as well as fruit, vegetables, sweets, soft drinks and cakes, etc.

In accordance with regulations, the grocery side of the business would close at 5.30 pm, but the rest of the shop would remain open until late evening.

The first ice cream my father made was made for this shop. It was made on our back verandah with a hand churn. From this small beginning grew the idea of bulk production. He canvassed the town to gauge response and this was such that he was encouraged to go ahead and from that small beginning Blix Ice Cream was established.

The factory was built at the rear of the home property; mainly one large room with double-doors opening on to Scandrett Street for ease of loading and deliveries.

Fred and unknown with the first Blix Ice Cream van
- Blick family.

As South Invercargill still depended on tanks for water, a deep well was sunk the in the southwest corner, and from this all the water used in the factory was pumped. This corner was partitioned off and doubled as an office-cum-storeroom.

Behind this room was the icebreaker machine with a concrete bench alongside. Ice slabs were placed on this bench, broken into chunks with wooden mallets and fed into the machine which then reduced them to a size suitable for the churning process and packing of barrels. Adjoining was the cool room, a small insulated room where ice and perishables were stored. Most of the east wall was taken up with sterilising equipment and shelves for the various sized containers. Barrels used in conjunction with these were stored underneath. Hot water was heated by an adjacent coal-fired boiler.

Mix was made up every day. It was a meticulous task and one of my responsibilities. The mixture had to be brought to a certain temperature, held there, and then quickly cooled before being stored in the cool room. If my memory serves me rightly, butterfat content at that time must not fall below 10%.

Suppliers of milk and cream were Costers’ of Nith Street. Borstal Farm and later, mainly Crombies Farm, Kennington.

The churns were set up in the centre of the rear of the building. At first, only one was installed, but demand soon proved this inadequate and a second was acquired.

These churns were large heavy steel drums; heavy steel beaters were inserted, the prepared mix poured in and flavourings added. They were than capped with lids of the same heavy steel, clamped into place and the machinery switched on. They revolved in large wooden casks packed around with layers of chopped ice interspersed with coarse salt. On completion, the ice cream was transferred into the required containers which had been set in barrels and packed around with ice & salt in the same manner as that used in the churning process.

Quantities in demand at that time were ½ gallon, 1 gallon and 2 gallons. We also had 5 gallon and 10 gallon containers, but these were mainly reserved for large gatherings such as shows, regattas and so on.

Over the years we dealt with Rattrays, Royd Bros & Kirk, Henry Berry, McAra and Hazlett. I know there were more but these are ones that spring readily to mind. Containers were made by Spiers Plumbers, Dee Street, Invercargill.

In the beginning, ice was purchased from Bluff and The Waitaki Dairy Co., but this was merely a temporary measure to get the factory up and running and to give us time to access its potentiality before further commitment. It now became a matter of expediency and urgency that equipment for this purpose be procured and the factory be re-organised.

To accommodate the machinery the factory was expanded to more than double its original size, now extended on to the next section.

The cool room was done away with and a large freezing chamber built. An ice breaking machine was set up along the concrete bench to facilitate that process and a coal-fired boiler installed adjacent to the sterilising block which was now situated on the east side of the extension. The ice-making machinery took up much of the centre floor space of the new building which was fenced around for safety. Attached to the outside of the west wall was a condenser with a concrete trough underneath and on the inside of this wall stood the ice tank. Pipes abounded everywhere.

The tank contained 20 heavy oblong black vats; 2 rows of 10. These were lowered into place using a grappling hook and were then filled with water, leaving room for expansion, lids inserted and the machinery set in motion. Each morning the tank was emptied and the blocks transferred to the freezing chamber. Each block weighed ½ cwt.

Conditions prevailing at that time dictated daily deliveries were a must, and these were increased at the height of summer.

Reg Anderson worked for Dad in this capacity for a number of years. The factory was now in a position to take on more labour. Besides Dad, Reg and myself, three more staff were now employed and this was increased as the season progressed.

Legend: Fred Blick

Fred Blick came over on a ship to NZ from Victoria, Australia with his brother. They docked in Bluff and were meant to go on to Nelson but Fred decided to stay in Invercargill. In May 1903 he began his first employment in Invercargill as a baker's cart driver for Anderson Baker & Confectionery. Fred wed Mary Metcalfe on 15 November 1905. In 1906 he was delivering bread for the Southland Bread Coy by horse and cart. By 1908 he was working as a carter for the Invercargill Tram Company and by 1909 was a member of the Southland Mounted Rifles. On 25 August 1916 he received his Electric-Tram Driver’s Certificate. He was also an active member of the Southland Carters’ and Drivers’ Association. In 1924 Fred and Mary established the Scandrett St grocery shop that eventually grew into the Blix Ice Cream Company. They went on to have 6 children; Frederick, Morrell, Dulcie, Esme, Audrey and Winston. They all helped out with the business. The Blix Ice Cream Company was taken over Crystal Ice Cream of Dunedin in 1936. Crystal had also taken over Phantazzi Ice Cream, and the two operations were merged into a new company, the Southland Ice Cream Company Ltd. Fred Blick was appointed Manager and Director. The new "Pinnacle" brand replaced both Blix and Phantazzi. Fred retired as Manager in 1939, but stayed on as a Director, along with son Fred Jr. Fred died on 2 August 1955. Mary died on 12 October 1972.

Frederick T. Blick

NZ Ice Cream Manufacturers' Assn Conferences were held each year in the “off” season. My parents attended these. Besides enjoying socialising with people in the same industry they enabled Dad to keep up with all the latest trends and technology which in due course he incorporated into the factory.

Insulated cabinets replaced the barrels and were hailed as a great improvement in the keeping quality of the products.

In the beginning, only vanilla ice cream had been manufactured, but now flavoured ice cream was introduced and proved very popular. Orange was the first, followed by Passion Fruit and then a succession of others. It soon became the “in” thing.

Eskimo Pies (from 1926) and Ice Cream Sandwiches were specialities.

Ice cream sold in cones for 1d, 3d and 6d. Wholesale price was 8/6d per gallon (85 cents). A gallon more than doubled its outlay and was considered a very profitable side line.

The factory was in full production when opposition started up. First, there was Phantazzi, and Coaley’s Store, North Invercargill was agent for Dunedin's Crystal: Royal (also from Dunedin) was another brand. Rices was a late entrant to the field (1944), but had been our customer until then.

I do not think they posed any great threat to us. We made a quality ice cream and gave a good service. In hindsight, I think it was probably the best stimulus we could have had and a compliment to our father.

Blix Ice Cream was consigned all over Southland; as well as shops, tearooms, etc, shows, regattas, race meetings, fetes, schools and firm picnics – all were catered for.

Dad had prefabricated stalls built that could be set up in a trice. Later these were replaced by transportable ones. They came to be known as "Blix Cooling Stations".

Blix stalls, Oreti Beach, early 1930s. "Cool Off with Blix", "A Food Not a Fad".
- Blick family.

Blix Cooling Station, Invercargill Showgrounds, early 1930s.
- Blick family.

In 1931 he erected a lock-up Blix Cooling Station shop in from the main entrance at Oreti Beach and gave to the public a service second to none. Ice cream, cordials, iced drinks by the bottle or glass, sweets, fruit, biscuits, films – all were stocked. At one time he had the agency for a type of surfboard. These were hired out at 6d (5 cents) for 30 minutes and were in great demand.

Blix Cooling Station shop, Oreti Beach.
- Blick family.


A busy Blix Cooling Station shop, Oreti Beach.
- Blick family.


Fred serving customers at the Blix Cooling Station shop, Oreti Beach.
- Blick family.

In a clearing to the right, just before the entrance, was another building where hot water was procurable and take-away afternoon teas on trays available. These places were open every weekend and on holidays and also by request from organisations during the summer months. It was a popular picnic spot in those days, within easy cycling distance from the town. Buses ran a continuous return service at weekends and holidays and were well patronised. Lifesavers patrolled the beach and put on displays.

Ice cream, at that time, was recognised as only a seasonal food and it was uneconomical to continue through the winter.

During the winter months the factory would cease production and the plant would be overhauled and maintenance work carried out. It was not until the advent of mechanical refrigeration that ice cream became an all-year commodity.

This was coming into vogue around 1936-37 when Dad was faced with a major decision. Crystal Ice Company was eyeing Southland and had approached him with a take-over bid. All things considered the offer was opportune. New technology was coming to the fore that would revolutionise the industry and would mean massive reconstruction.

Family who had been supportive had now left home. Dad felt that the time was right. A deal satisfactory to all concerned was arrived at and accepted, and a new Company formed.

Southland Ice Cream Coy – brand name Pinnacle, with Dad as Director and General Manager.

Southland Times, 19 September 1936.

Only the business and plant were involved in the transaction. Dad still retained the properties and his outside interests.

The take-over of Phantazzi Ice Cream Co. was already a fait accompli – their new factory in Tweed Street, not yet ready for production, now became the headquarters of the new enterprise. The plant in Scandrett Street was dismantled and the machinery and viable equipment shifted to the new premises, along with the latest technology procurable.

With all the advanced innovations the whole concept of manufacturing had taken on a new aspect and this necessitated a change of product.

This was Dad’s province. By the middle of August 1937 this had been perfected. Staff had been hired and the factory was geared for production.

Pinnacle - Crackajack - Sunkist

Southland Ice Cream Company, 1937 - 1964

Betty Blick of Invercargill remembers

Southland Ice Cream Co. factory, Tweed St..
- Blick family.


Pinnacle brand signage being applied to a stall.
- Blick family.

My first day of employment at the office of the Southland Ice Cream Co, was an easy one. There was no office furniture or telephone so I was told to take a day off.

The following day I found that a table, chairs and shelves had been delivered and a telephone was being installed.

There were two offices. The lower half of the walls was pale green tiles and the upper half cream enamel paint.

For the first week ice cream was supplied by Crystal Ice Co. in Dunedin but production of Pinnacle ice cream was soon underway in the very modern factory.

The large main room of the factory housed a pasteuriser, homogeniser (viscoliser), cooler, two 200 gallon ageing vats and a churn. Later on this room was enlarged and a modern Vogt churn installed.

Southland Ice Cream Co. factory - electric Westinghouse refrigeration compressors in the foreground and Imperial Brass "Torpedo" dehydrators on the wall.
- Blick family.


Mixing tank nearest camera, then homogeniser, then two 200 gallon ageing vats above and either side of two Vogt ice cream churns.
- Blick family.


Two Vogt ice cream churns with ageing vats either side, above.
- Blick family.

Ice cream was sold in 3 gallon and 5 gallon cans and there was a can wash up and sterilising room. All sterilising of cans and equipment was done by steam (Wyandotte detergents). We also had a coal fired boiler, an engine room, three freezing chambers and a bag room where insulated canvas bags were stored and Country orders packed. An ice tank was never used but the space was later incorporated into the main factory.

There were three store rooms: one for large hundred weight cases of skim milk powder (McPherson, Kemp & Co) and sugar from Rattrays which was in 70lb bags. Forty pound boxes of unsalted butter (South Island Dairy Federation) were kept in a freezing room.

There was also a cone storage room for cartons of 3d and 6d cones. (1d cones were not used).

Another store room held reams of vegetable parchment paper, bolts of cheese cloth and cases of dipping chocolate and cocoa butter, flagons of vanilla essence, crates of tinfoil Eskimo Pie wrappers, Hav-A-Heart bags and cartons, and 6d and 1/- block cartons.

6d blocks were called "Sprats" to distinguish them from the 1/- blocks.

We also had washrooms, toilets and a lunchroom for staff, as well as a bicycle shed for staff cycles and garaging for vans.

The Chevrolet van was insulated and had rear and side doors. It was used for North, South and Town deliveries.

The REO Speed Wagon was used for taking Country orders to the bus and rail depots. Later a very modern Studebaker van was purchased.

"Pinnacle" branded Chevrolet and REO Speed Wagon delivery vans.
- Blick family.

When war broke out in 1939 rationing of butter, sugar and petrol affected the ice cream industry and very strict rules were enforced. The butterfat content of ice cream was not to fall below 8% and must not exceed 8.5%. Part of one storeroom was partitioned off and made into a testing room for milk and cream.

The Health Inspector would call at any time and take samples to check that the rules were obeyed. If you exceeded the 8.5% butterfat, then your ration would be cut.

Ice cream mixes were balanced each day according to the butterfat content of the milk cream. Milk came from Kennington and the factory took all the cream the very excellent Borstal Farm could supply.

The Company hired out Frigidaire refrigerators to shop keepers and later purchased some Kelvinator brand fridges.

The Eskimo Pie making machine was first used at the Dunedin Exhibition in 1926. It was quite ingenious, cutting ice cream slabs into pieces, dipping them in hot chocolate and sliding them onto the table to be hand wrapped and packed – a time consuming process but one soon became quite adept at this, with practice.

A Hav-A-Heart novelty machine was purchased from America and in those early days the Hearts on sticks were bagged and packed by hand also.

Chevrolet and Studebaker delivery vans outside the Southland Ice Cream Co. factory, Tweed St., displaying Crackajack, Hav-A-Heart and Eskimo Pie advertising.
- Blick family.


"Pinnacle Eskimo Pie" signage on Chevrolet delivery van.
- Blick family.


Eskimo Pie and Hav-A-Heart advertising on Studebaker delivery van. Bodywork by Bath & Sons Ltd.
- Blick family.


Fred working a transportable Blix Cooling Station, Invercargill Showgrounds.
- Blick family.


Dulcie Blick manning the Blix Cooling Station, Invercargill Showgrounds (1940s?). Crackajack scoop ice cream, Pinnacle ice cream bricks, Eskimo Pies and chocolate-coated Hav-A-Heart novelties. Behind Dulcie are boxes of Newmans ice cream cones for scooping, on the counter are Excelsior cup cones.
- Blick family.


Western Star, 16 August 1940


An old Crackajack brick carton, found by one of Fred's great-granddaughters in a wall cavity during renovations.
- Blick family.

There were three Invercargill van delivery runs - North, Town and South Invercargill. North and South were served twice a week and the town three times. Orders were despatched twice daily to H & H Motors, News bus, Southland Carrying Co and Rail. Bluff orders were picked up from the factory by Bluff carrier King of the Road, Jack Harrison.

Ice cream delivery runs

There was a card checking system for cans and a check for bags also (which were numbered).

During the War years when petrol was rationed a gas burner was fixed to the Studebaker van and a horse and chariot-like cart used for odd orders. Both the gas burner and horse were more of a nuisance than an asset. We also had a bicycle with front carrier that would carry three bags of ice cream.

On Christmas and New Years Eve, a fully loaded van was stationed in Esk Street. The driver would telephone the factory and be given the names of shops that were out of ice cream and he would serve them. There were at one time 19 fruit shops, milk bars and tea rooms in Dee, Tay and Esk Streets that all sold bulk ice cream and novelties.

The brand name was changed from "Pinnacle" to "Crackajack", and later (due to a conflict with North Island brands) to "Sunkist".

Sunkist Ice Cream delivery van.
- Blick family.

January and February were the busiest months of the year with extra hours being worked and factory staff putting through extra mixes to keep up supplies.

During winter months when sales slowed down a little, spring cleaning, repair work, alterations and painting took place. Ice cream cans were checked, some being set aside for re-tinning. Sales tallies were studied and lists made out of supplies required for the coming season.

Stocks of labels, cartons, wrappers and cones were never allowed to get low.

ANECDOTES

- One lover of ice cream liked nothing better on a cold frosty night than to purchase a dozen Eskimo Pies, sit down by a big open fire, put his feet on the mantlepiece and eat his way through those pies.

One thing puzzled him – how did the factory get the ice cream into those chocolate cases? (He could not understand why the ice cream did not melt if you dipped it into hot chocolate).

- One customer thought he knew everything.

He ordered two cans of ice cream for a picnic and was told that the ice cream would stay in good condition all day if left in the insulated bag – but no – he had to remove the cans and place them in the river “to keep them cool”. He then complained that the ice cream was too soft to serve.

Southland Ice Cream Co. Ltd Board of Directors

After Fred Blick retired in 1939, Jim Stewart took over as Manager. Jim had come from Royal Ice Cream in Dunedin, and he stayed on as Manager for the rest of the life of the company.

Jim Stewart in 1955.

Southland Ice Cream Co. Ltd was fully taken over by Crystal Group (Dunedin) in 1961.

Crystal was itself then purchased by General Foods (Tip Top) in 1964. Jim Stewart stayed on as local Manager.

The Sunkist brand was probably discontinued around this time.

Memories: Help us tell the stories

If you can fill in any gaps in our history of Blix, Pinnacle, Crackajack or Sunkist ice creams, or if you have personal memories of the brands or either Blix or Southland Ice Cream Companies that you would like to share, please email us at: info@nzicecream.org.nz

Blix delivery truck, 1920s - Blick family.

- Special thanks to Esme Peddie, Betty Blick, Lynne Day and Jo-Anna Day for the extensive history and treasure trove of photographs.

Esme Peddie (Fred’s daughter) and Betty Blick (Fred’s daughter-in- law) have both passed away since they wrote their respective histories; we are indebted to them for writing down their memories and saving these special pieces of Southland history.

Back