The Chinese have discovered the taste of Warwick – that’s Warwick Ice Cream – and they want more of it including green tea ice cream.

Earlier this year Gerard Bucci Jr., president of Warwick Ice Cream, was approached about sending his product to China for distribution.

After a meeting and taste test with the owners of Anhui Quickstep Foodstuffs, a retailer in China, the company placed an order for 730 three-gallon tubs of Warwick Ice Cream.

“We definitely made a good impression,” Bucci said.

Then, after a 45-day trip, more than 2,000 gallons of ice cream landed in the port city of Wuhu, China. After a 10-day quarantine, during which the Chinese government runs various health and quality tests on the product, Warwick Ice Cream’s goods “passed with flying colors.”

Warwick Ice Cream’s main competitor in China is Haagen-Dazs. Warwick Ice Cream sells their three-gallon tubs for less than Haagen-Dazs’ 2 ½ gallon tubs.

Almost immediately, Bucci said, his Chinese clients were getting positive feedback from customers, and after only a couple months the retailers submitted a second order, this time for 1,200 tubs that’s expected to land in Wuhu at the end of August.

“It’s gaining popularity over Haagen-Dazs,” Bucci said. “Our products have proved superior to what they have out there and our quality is equal to if not better than what the Chinese are used to.”

He believes that the possibilities for Warwick Ice Cream in China are endless and expects orders to continue increasing in frequency and size as their ice cream becomes more popular.

For their latest order the company is trying a new flavor to appeal to the Chinese taste, green tea.

Initially, it was a struggle for the company to create a sufficient flavor for China because their flavor expectations for green tea are much more intense than here. They managed, however, to create a stronger, more “concentrated” flavor in their newest flavor.

Bucci said it is really up to retailers what flavors they are looking for because Warwick Ice Cream “can produce any flavor that there is a market for.”

Warwick Ice Cream, based in Warwick for 85 years, has a standing invitation to visit China, but the company wants to give the business and their product time to “get up off its feet” in the new country before making the trip to there.

Despite its now international fame, Warwick Ice Cream hasn’t forgot about its local customers and have continued to innovate new flavors for Lil’ Rhody.

The newest flavor, which will launch next month through a partnership with Autocrat, another famous local company, is coffee milk. The flavor was brought to the 4th Annual Incredible Ice Cream Throwdown hosted by RI FoodFights at the end of June and won People’s Choice Award.

Later this year Warwick Ice Cream will also have a Christmas ornament available for purchase, ironically enough, made in China.

The company is looking for a warehouse locally to expand their business as well as ways of making gelato flavors. They now make an all-organic ice cream.

“We are always looking for new opportunities and new clients,” Bucci said. “There is always something in the works here. The future is looking bright.”

The family business is entering its 4th generation as Bucci’s son, Vincent, and nephew, Thomas Bucci Jr., are “learning the ropes” to take over eventually.

Bucci said, “It’s been a great couple of years. We are confident the growth will continue.”

So far, China represents a small percentage of the Warwick Ice Cream market. The company is currently producing about 2 million gallons annually, but then so many Chinese have yet to discover green tea ice cream.