Marcantonio Foods

What Marcantonio Foods does

Marcantonio Foods is a UK-based B2B manufacturer and supplier of ice cream cones, wafers, ice cream flavourings, toppings, inclusions, and related serving and packaging products, operated through the legal entity NIC ICE LTD. The company's lineage traces to 1893, when founder Luigi Marcantonio emigrated from Italy to England and, in 1895, began producing some of the first rolled sugar cones in the UK from a small bakery in Kennington. Today it positions itself as one of the largest UK producers of cones and wafers, run by approximately 300 personnel across five BRC-accredited manufacturing and warehousing sites in Barking, London, Glasgow, Bodmin, Witham-St-Hughes, and Omagh, with an EU sales office in Feucht, Germany, and ownership concentrated within the third and fourth generations of the founding family.

The product range spans core cone and wafer lines, a proprietary Leagel brand of ice cream flavours and bases, topping sauces, inclusions, sprinkles, disposables, glassware, packaging, accessories, and point-of-sale merchandise. Manufacturing is grounded in artisanal hand-rolled cone production techniques from the original 1895 method, supported by an in-house technical team that develops customised flavour combinations (e.g., Gin Vanilla & Fig, Beetroot & Dark Chocolate, Caramel Popcorn & Mascarpone) for customer menu development. Products can be personalised to customer designs, and the company maintains BRC (Brand Reputation through Compliance) and PCI DSS compliance standards required by UK retailers and food-service operators.

Revenue is generated primarily through a sales-led B2B go-to-market spanning UK Retail, UK Trade, Food Service, and Retail Trade channels, with monthly billing on 28-day credit terms and account-managed sales representatives serving enterprise customers alongside a 24/7 direct online storefront serving SMB buyers. The most recent major strategic event was the 2017 merger with Waverley Bakery (a wholly owned subsidiary), which expanded the company into food service and retail trade beyond its traditional wholesale channels. Related operating subsidiaries include Marcantonio Foods Ltd (core operating subsidiary) and Call Caterlink (catering services).

Name

Marcantonio Foods

Legal name

NIC ICE LTD

Website

https://marcantonio.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1895

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Marcantonio Foods is a UK-based B2B manufacturer and supplier of ice cream cones, wafers, flavourings, toppings, and related serving products. Serving UK retail, trade, and food-service customers across five BRC-accredited sites, it is one of the largest UK cone and wafer producers, family-owned for four generations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ice Cream Cones and Wafers Manufacturing

NAICS

Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing (31152), Flavoring Syrup and Concentrate Manufacturing (31193)

SIC

Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts (2024), Bakery Products (2050)

akta.pro primary industry

Ice Cream, Frozen Desserts & Novelties Manufacturing (AFAKAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Dairy-Based Frozen Dessert Mixes & Bases Manufacturing (Industrial/Private Label) (AFAHAEAI), Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts Wholesale (AFAIAHAC)

Keywords

• Ice cream cones
• Wafer products
• Ice cream ingredients
• Food service supplies
• Bakery manufacturing

Headquarters

HQ city

Barking

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. B2B product sales: The company generates revenue through direct sales of ice cream related products to retail and trade customers. Product range includes cones, wafers, Leagel Flavours and Bases, Topping Sauces, Inclusions, Sprinkles, Disposables, Glassware and Point of Sale Items. The company offers personalised products to customer designs and operates an online store for ordering.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Marcantonio Foods manufactures and supplies ice cream cones, wafers, and related ice cream products including Leagel flavours and bases, topping sauces, inclusions, sprinkles, disposables, glassware, and point of sale items. The company serves UK retail, trade, and food service customers through BRC-accredited UK manufacturing facilities and an online ordering store, with options to personalise products to customer designs.

Product overview

Marcantonio Foods is a supplier of ice cream related products founded in 1895, operating as part of NIC Ice Ltd. The company offers a comprehensive product portfolio including Cones and Wafers as core products, Leagel Flavours and Bases, Topping Sauces, Inclusions, and Sprinkles as ingredient products, along with Disposables, Glassware, Point of Sale Items, Decorations, Packaging, and Accessories. Products can be personalised to customer designs. In 2017, Marcantonio Foods merged with Waverley Bakery to expand into Food Service and Retail Trade.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Leagel: Flavours and Bases product line

Products and services

• Cones Rolled sugar cones and various cone types, originally produced by Luigi Marcantonio in 1895 as one of the first rolled sugar cones in the UK. Core product for ice cream serving, supplied to retail and trade customers.
• Wafers

Quantifiable outcome

• 120+ years of continuous operation as a family business
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Waverley BakerycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017In 2017, Waverley Bakery merged with Marcantonio Foods, allowing directors of both companies to share ideas and opportunities and develop new markets within Food Service and the Retail Trade. The merger expanded the company's capabilities and market reach while maintaining traditional family values.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• R&R Ice Cream (Froneri): One of Europe's largest private-label ice cream manufacturers, formed from the merger of R&R Ice Cream and Nestlé's European ice cream business, now operating under Froneri. A broad incumbent serving retail and foodservice with branded and private-label frozen desserts — comparable customer base but vertically integrated further downstream than Marcantonio.
• 2 Sisters Food Group: One of the UK's largest food manufacturers operating across bakery, chilled, frozen, and dessert categories with extensive private-label capabilities. Comparable in scale of UK food manufacturing footprint and B2B retail/foodservice customer base, though highly diversified across many product categories beyond ice cream.
• Premier Foods: Major UK branded food manufacturer with a portfolio spanning cakes, desserts, and ambient grocery products. Comparable as a UK-focused multi-site food manufacturer serving major grocers, though operating at significantly larger scale and broader product mix than Marcantonio.
• Barry Callebaut: World's leading chocolate and cocoa manufacturer supplying industrial customers including ice cream makers, bakeries, and confectioners. Comparable as a B2B ingredient supplier into Marcantonio's downstream ice cream and dessert customers, particularly relevant for chocolate inclusions and toppings.
• Tate & Lyle: Global ingredients manufacturer producing sweeteners, texturants, and flavour systems used widely in ice cream, dairy desserts, and bakery applications. Comparable as a B2B ingredient supplier into ice cream and dessert manufacturing channels, though operating at significantly larger scale and broader product portfolio.
• Richmond Foods (parent: Britvic): UK ice cream manufacturer (now part of Britvic) producing impulse, multi-pack, and takeaway ice cream for major retailers and foodservice. A broader incumbent in the UK frozen dessert space serving overlapping retail and foodservice customers, though primarily a finished ice cream producer rather than cone/ingredient supplier.

Direct peers

• Bisca: UK-based specialist wafer and biscuit manufacturer serving the ice cream, bakery, and confectionery industries. Overlaps directly with Marcantonio's wafer product line and UK retail/trade customer base, making it the closest UK-domestic direct competitor in wafer manufacturing.
• Joy Cone Company: One of the largest ice cream cone manufacturers in the United States, producing flat-bottom, rolled sugar, and waffle cones for retail and foodservice customers. Directly comparable to Marcantonio's core cone-manufacturing business and serves as the most analogous scaled cone specialist peer globally.
• Frederick's Dairies: UK dairy and ice cream dessert manufacturer producing branded and private-label ice cream products for major retailers. Comparable to Marcantonio's UK retail customer focus and ice cream ingredient/flavour capabilities, though operating further downstream into finished ice cream rather than cones and ingredients.

Others

• Northern Foods (historic) / Pukka Pies / No Fear (adjacent): UK ambient and frozen food manufacturer historically part of Northern Foods group, now absorbed into adjacent operators. Listed as an adjacent comparable for UK ambient food manufacturing scale and BRC-accredited private-label production, though less directly overlapping with the ice cream cones/wafers niche.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/marcantonio1895
• Facebookfacebook.com/marcantonio1895
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/marcantonio-limited

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Marcantonio Foods