House of Pops receives superior taste awards

DUBAI: Everyone’s favourite ice treats on a stick company, House of Pops, is now recognised among the world’s tastiest foods, thanks to a two-star ‘Superior Product’ rating from a renowned panel of food experts at the International Taste Institute.

House of Pops’ market-defining healthy dessert and treat range has disrupted the traditional dessert market since launching five years ago, with its sustainable plant-based, five-ingredient, no additive products.

Now its best-selling mango strawberry pops and latest product innovation, choco-dipped ice cream bites, have received global recognition after a tasting jury comprising more than 200 professional taste experts from over 20 countries were wowed by the flavours.

And these are no ordinary judges. The panel includes some of the world’s most renowned chefs and sommeliers. Each jury member is carefully selected based on their tasting experience; they’ve been spotlighted by chef and sommelier competitions or top institutions such as Le Guide Michelin and Gault & Millau.

In the judging, House of Pops’ Choco-Dipped Ice Cream Bites scored 86.4 percent, and the product received the 2 stars Superior Taste Award (classifying it as a “remarkable product”).

The mango strawberry pops also received the 2 stars Superior Taste Award, and “remarkable product” classification.

CEO Mazen Kanaan says: “We always love seeing our customers enjoy our products, but to have them judged by a renowned panel of global experts is really an incredible accolade. To receive a two-star rating from the institute means a majority of judges who tasted our mango strawberry pop and our bites gave us a high rating. This is not an ‘award’, it is more a certification of our high quality and the actual great taste of our product.

“We now know it’s not just us telling everyone how tasty our products are — it’s the international community of leading food experts!”

Described as one of the most prestigious awards in the food and beverage industry globally, the International Taste Institute, based in Brussels, Belgium, asks its judging panels to undertake ‘blind’ tastings, without seeing the product name or packaging, and judge in complete silence to avoid bias or coercion.

Mohamad Idelbi, Area Manager – MENA Region at the International Taste Institute, says: “A product granted the Superior Taste Award is one which has gone through a sensory evaluation of each of the five criteria by professional taste-experts and achieved high scores. This means that the product is well made, balanced and delicious. Every year thousands of products are evaluated, but only the best are certified.”

Each product is evaluated in accordance with the five International Hedonic Sensory Analysis criteria (AFNOR XP V096A standards) – first impression, vision, olfaction, taste and texture (for food) or final sensation (for drinks).

In just five years, House of Pops has risen to become the leading health and wellness pop manufacturer in the region, famous for its hand-crafted, plant-based, five-ingredient pops and bars. Its iconic brightly coloured stores, kiosks, carts and pop-ups are hard to miss.

Company Co-founder Marcela Sancho recently won The Retailer category of the 2023 Women SME Leaders Awards, organised by Entrepreneur Middle East magazine.

The company also took the MEED-GlobalData SME of the Year Award 2022, underlining its forward-thinking approach to crafting a business that holds happiness, staff welfare and the environment at the heart of its mission.