Local Indigenous chef wins top honours in ice cream competition

Zach Keeshig from Owen Sound partnered with Canadian ice cream brand Chapman's and won top prize at International Ice Cream Consortium.

An Indigenous chef and restaurant owner from Owen Sound is putting his sweet treat on the world map, tantalizing taste buds with his unique ice cream invention.

Zach Keeshig, 35, won an international award for his sweetgrass flavour, in a partnership with Canadian company Chapman’s Ice Cream.

After presenting to 100 industry professionals and competing against 10 other participants from all around the world at the International Ice Cream Consortium in Thessaloniki, Greece, Keeshig and his ice cream came out on top in a tie for first place.

Only one participant from each country was allowed to enter.

Chapman’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Ashley Chapman and Keeshig worked together during the pandemic when they partnered on a project to prepare boxed lunches for frontline workers. Fast forward to the summer of 2024, Chapman invited Keeshig to take part in the competition the following year for the best new innovative ice cream in the world, which took place Oct. 13 to 18.

“It also is a privilege to be able to work with Canada’s largest independent ice cream manufacturer that is so local and close to home,” Keeshig said.

Every country can submit one product into the competition. The ice cream summit is held annually and brings in competition from everywhere.

How did they manage to get all that ice cream overseas? It took about six days and 40 kilograms of dry ice to make it to Greece.

How It All Started

Keeshig, from the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation at Cape Croker Reserve, has been cooking since he was 17, when he got his start at the Owen Sound Farmer’s Market.

He is now the owner of Naagan on 10th Street East in Owen Sound, and has been making this ice cream at his restaurant for a few years. Once he connected with Chapman’s, based in Markdale (about a 45-minute drive from Owen Sound), his ice cream flavour was able to gain traction with a wider audience.

Keeshig told CTV News he recalls when he and his dad used to smudge – an Indigenous ceremony burning sacred products like herbs and medicines with sweetgrass. They thought that since sweetgrass smells like vanilla, it would be a perfect flavour in a dessert.

When he got the idea, he sourced some seeds and grew his own garden patch of sweetgrass. Wiingashk, which is “sweetgrass” in Ojibway, grows best in marshy areas. It’s similar to lemon grass but has a soft texture, like catnip. The grass grows as tall as a few feet, which then gets cut.

To make the ice cream, Keeshig got a big handful of sweetgrass and brewed and steeped it. Then he blended and strained it, added the cream and egg yolks, some colour, and sweetened it naturally with Canadian maple syrup. The flavour is vanilla-almond, reminiscent of marzipan with a hint of cinnamon in a custard-like texture.

Partnering with Chapman’s

Chapman’s was a sponsor for an Indigenous fashion show at Casa Loma in Toronto. The organizers told Chapman’s COO they were looking for Indigenous flavours from an Indigenous chef and that’s when Ashley Chapman thought of Keeshig.

“We said, let’s give it a shot. Let’s see if we can make this into a real ice cream flavour and market it as a collaboration. So it worked,” says Chapman.

From there, the ice cream was used at various special events and at pop-ups.

Currently, proceeds from ice cream sales go to the The DreamCatcher Charitable Foundation, an organization to build healthy and vibrant Indigenous communities.

What’s Next

Keeshig said he hopes to get his ice cream flavour into grocery stores and manufacture it on a larger scale. He wants to become the first Indigenous chef to have his restaurant get a Michelin star.

“You go to the grocery store and you don’t typically see Indigenous products. This is inspirational as it’s made by local people who are Indigenous,” Keeshig said. “You know it’s been a great opportunity for us to showcase Indigenous food and put Indigenous food on the map of Canada.”