HOW IT ALL STARTED
Established in 1993, the Daintree Ice Cream Company became a highlight for visitors to the region. This was thanks to the creative vision and pioneering spirit shown by original owner Tracey Brady.
Surrounded by jungle, with no mains power, no town water and barely even a road, the undertaking was not for the faint-hearted.
Despite the obstacles, Tracey grew this humble little business into an iconic must-see destination in the Daintree Rainforest.
WHERE WE ARE TODAY
Twenty-five years on, the property is still without mains power.
Yet, new owners Dave Mainwaring and Jenna Rumney are embracing living off the grid, working in true harmony with natural systems.
After a decade of guiding rainforest tours and working on the Great Barrier Reef, Dave and Jenna were on the hunt for a block of land in the Daintree and a new project to sink their teeth into.
During their search, they got the ‘scoop’ on the Daintree Ice Cream Company
Established in 1993, the Daintree Ice Cream Co. is a world-famous tourist attraction specialising in home-grown fruit ice cream. Dave and Jenna purchased the 22-acre property and threw everything they had into learning about the craft of ice cream making.
A massive refurbishment of the commercial kitchen soon followed including the purchase of a top of the range, hand-built ice cream machine. This investment has helped to refine, perfect and deliver the very finest quality ice cream, gelatos and sorbets possible.
SWITCHING TO ORGANIC FARMING
One of the first changes they made on the farm was switching to organic farming to reduce nutrient runoff, a major issue affecting the Great Barrier Reef.
They began planting native ‘companion’ plants to fix nitrogen and ‘sacrificial’ plants to stop pests eating fruit crops, and introduced sustainably sourced compostable ice cream cups to reuse as compost.
Revegetation to create habitat and food for native wildlife and corridors for transitory species was another major step in their transformation of the property.
This is no ordinary ice cream company.
Living in the jungle means we need to be 100% self-sufficient.
Our business runs on solar and generator power, and we reduce, reuse and recycle at every opportunity.
We pump water from our river and compost our waste by turning our ice cream cups into compost. This is then used to grow the exotic fruit trees that bear the heroes in our delicious ice cream, gelatos & sorbets.
Our organically grown fruit is the centrepiece of each recipe and we create our ice cream, sorbets and gelatos onsite in small batches. This ensures we provide exceptional quality desserts and maintain the legacy for unique tropical fruit flavours that began back in 1993.
We hope that by using our land holistically we can contribute to a better understanding of rainforest ecosystems. It is important that we preserve wildlife habitats and act as stewards for native flora and fauna. We hope to demonstrate how successful businesses and ethical land management can co-exist and enrich one another if done correctly.
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