Is First street vanilla bean premium ice cream Keto?

The Ingredient Breakdown

As a food scientist, I look beyond the marketing claims and dive straight into the formulation. The ketogenic diet requires a drastic reduction in carbohydrates, typically under 20-50 grams per day, while prioritizing high fat intake. Unfortunately, the formulation of First street vanilla bean premium ice cream relies heavily on ingredients that spike blood sugar rather than provide healthy fats.

The primary issue lies in the sweetening agents. The second and third ingredients listed are sugar and corn syrup. In the world of food science, sugar (sucrose) is the standard sweetener, but on Keto, it is the enemy. It provides pure carbohydrates with zero fiber, leading to an immediate insulin response that halts ketosis. Corn syrup is even more concerning for strict dieters because it is essentially pure glucose. It has a high glycemic index, meaning it hits the bloodstream rapidly. Even a small serving of this ice cream could consume your entire daily carbohydrate allowance.

We also need to look at the base ingredients: Milkfat and nonfat milk. While milkfat is great for texture and flavor, nonfat milk contains lactose (milk sugar). Lactose is a carbohydrate that counts toward your daily limit. Combined with the added sugars, the lactose content makes the carb count too high for a standard serving size. Finally, the stabilizers used—guar gum, carob bean gum, and carrageenan—are generally low-carb and acceptable on Keto, but they cannot offset the damage done by the sugar content.

Nutritional Value

When evaluating a product for Keto, we look at the net carbs (Total Carbohydrates minus Fiber). While we don't have the exact label for this specific store-brand tub, we can analyze the implications of the ingredients. Because sugar and corn syrup are the primary sweeteners, the sugar content per serving is likely very high—likely exceeding 15-20 grams per half-cup serving.

For a diet that restricts carbs to 20 grams a day, a single scoop of this ice cream would immediately break ketosis. Additionally, while ice cream is a source of fat, the ratio here is not optimized for Keto. Keto diets look for high fat with very low carbs. This product offers a standard nutritional profile of high sugar and moderate fat, which is the exact opposite of what a ketogenic metabolism requires. It is a high-calorie treat that offers little satiety for the carbohydrate cost.