Choose Magnum Intense Dark if a larger 100ml stick and a dark-chocolate coating stated to be made with 70% cocoa matter most; its pack contains three sticks. Sainsbury's Dark Choc Ices provide eight smaller 70ml portions, but their dark-chocolate-flavoured coating has no stated cocoa percentage. Both formats need frozen storage, and a caterer serving them must make accurate allergen information available.
If a stated cocoa percentage matters to the menu, Magnum Intense Dark has a coating described as made with 70% cocoa. Its 100ml sticks are larger than Sainsbury's 70ml choc ices, so plan the number of portions accordingly.
Sainsbury's Dark Choc Ices come as eight 70ml portions in a 560ml pack. That format makes it straightforward to count portions against the guest list.
Food Standards Agency guidance calls for suitable frozen-storage facilities and temperature monitoring where necessary. Food businesses must also provide accurate allergen information for the food they serve.
These are ice-cream sticks and choc ices rather than conventional fruit ice lollies. Decide what the menu means by “dark”, then work out portions and frozen holding.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Dark-chocolate description | Check whether the exact product states a cocoa percentage. Magnum's dark coating is described as made with 70% cocoa; the 29% stated for Sainsbury's Dark Choc Ices is the proportion of coating in the product, not its cocoa content. | If I want to describe the buffet option as having a stated cocoa percentage, I need wording that applies to the exact product being served. |
| Portions | Compare the number and size of servings: Magnum Intense Dark has three 100ml sticks per pack; Sainsbury's Dark Choc Ices has eight 70ml portions. | For a larger individual dessert, I would plan around the 100ml sticks. For more smaller servings per pack, the eight-pack fits my portion plan. |
| Allergen information | Read the current ingredient and allergen declaration on each exact pack. If a food business serves the desserts, Food Standards Agency guidance requires accurate allergen information for customers. | I want guests to be able to identify the ingredients and allergen warnings for the particular treat they are offered. |
| Frozen holding | Both product listings specify storage at -18°C. Plan freezer space and bring out only portions ready for service; food businesses should arrange temperature monitoring where necessary under Food Standards Agency guidance. | There needs to be somewhere to keep the remaining portions frozen while guests use the buffet. |
A menu could overstate what guests are getting. Magnum Intense Dark states that its coating is made with 70% cocoa; Sainsbury's describes a dark-chocolate-flavoured coating without stating its cocoa percentage.
Use the wording for the exact product on your buffet label rather than applying Magnum's cocoa figure to another choc ice.
One pack of three 100ml sticks and one pack of eight 70ml choc ices serve different numbers of guests.
Set a portion plan from the guest count before deciding how many packs of either format to order.
Once different treats are set out together, guests need to know which ingredient information belongs to which one. Food Standards Agency guidance requires food businesses to provide accurate allergen information.
Keep the current packaging or accurate product-specific information accessible at the serving point, and avoid mixing up the two products.
Both product listings call for frozen storage at -18°C. Food Standards Agency guidance also addresses adequate frozen-storage and temperature-monitoring facilities for food businesses.
Plan freezer capacity before service, put out portions for prompt serving and keep the remainder in suitable frozen storage.
Magnum Intense Dark is a three-pack of 100ml ice-cream sticks. Its product listing describes a dark-chocolate coating made with 70% cocoa.
Sainsbury's Dark Choc Ices are vanilla ice creams with a dark-chocolate-flavoured coating, supplied as eight 70ml portions.
Tesco Groceries lists Magnum Collection Intense Dark sticks among its mini ice-cream products, alongside other frozen-dessert formats.
This option represents the larger, stated-cocoa dark-chocolate stick format for the buffet.
No image available
Three 100ml sticks suit a plan for larger individual desserts. The Intense Dark product description states that its dark-chocolate coating is made with 70% cocoa; check the current pack for allergen information and frozen-storage instructions before service.
No. Magnum Intense Dark states that its coating is made with 70% cocoa, while Sainsbury's Dark Choc Ices has a dark-chocolate-flavoured coating without a stated cocoa percentage. The latter product's 29% figure refers to the proportion of coating.
Read the ingredient and allergen declaration on the exact pack being served, including any precautionary warnings. Keep that information identifiable for each product rather than assuming that all dark-chocolate frozen desserts have the same ingredients.
Yes. Food Standards Agency guidance says retail and catering food businesses must provide accurate allergen information for the food and drink they serve, including prepacked and non-prepacked items. Keep information for each dessert available to guests at the serving point.
Keep them frozen according to their labels: the Magnum and Sainsbury's listings specify -18°C storage. For food-business service, Food Standards Agency guidance calls for adequate frozen-storage facilities and temperature monitoring where necessary.