Food Lion Introduces Low Carb Ice Cream Available in All Food Lion Stores

People on low- carbohydrate diets now have a new, sweet treat to enjoy. Food Lion has added three new low-carb flavors to its line of Healthy Delight ice cream.

With three to four net carbs per half-cup serving, Food Lion's Healthy Delight ice cream is the first store brand to offer fewer carbs and no added sugar. Healthy Delight ice cream is sweetened with Splenda(R) brand sucralose instead of added sugar.

Available in all 1,200 Food Lion stores by March 12, the low-carb Healthy Delight ice cream comes in three favors -- chocolate, vanilla and butter pecan. A 56-ounce lift-off-top container is priced at $3.99.

"We are excited to be the first supermarket chain in the United States to introduce a private-label low-carb ice cream, sweetened with Splenda," said Donna Smith, Food Lion brand manager. "We created this product to meet the needs of people on restrictive diets; those watching their intake of carbohydrates and those who must control their sugar."

Since dairy products contain the milk sugar -- lactose -- the product cannot be labeled as "sugar-free," but instead is defined as "no sugar added."

Splenda has no calories and is derived directly from cane sugar, so it tastes more like sugar. It is also free of the aftertaste associated with some artificial sweeteners. Sucralose has been approved by the regulatory agencies of more than 50 countries, including the United States (1998) and Canada (1991).

In addition to fewer carbs and no added sugar, Food Lion's Healthy Delight ice cream contains no gluten, a bonus for people with gluten-sourced allergies, such as celiac sprue disease. Celiac sprue, whose sufferers are gluten-intolerant, is believed to affect one in every 133 Americans, although only one in 4,700 have been diagnosed.

Shoppers will find the low-carb Healthy Delight flavors in the Food Lion ice cream freezer section by looking for the distinctive light-blue carton.

Food Lion's other Healthy Delight ice creams are premium low-fat or premium no sugar added flavors, containing 70 to 80 percent less fat and/or 30 to 40 percent fewer calories than standard ice cream.

Dairy Fresh, a Winston-Salem, N.C., subsidiary of Dean Foods, the nation's leading processor and distributor of fresh milk and other dairy products, manufactures the ice cream. Dairy Fresh produces all Food Lion brand ice creams.

Food Lion LLC is a subsidiary of Delhaize America, the U.S. division of Brussels-based Delhaize Group (NYSE:DEG) . Food Lion operates 1,200 stores and employs approximately 73,000 associates, delivering Extra Low Prices and service to its customers in 11 Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic states. Food Lion stores offer more than 28,000 different products, including a wide selection of Food Lion brand items.