Ever since the late 1970’s, the slush puppy machine can be found in various consumer outlets including newsagents, cafes and restaurants. Today, the slush market in the United Kingdom is worth a staggering £50million per year. These machines produce a flavoured ice beverage commonly known as a slush or slush puppy and are fantastic refreshments whatever the time of year but are, naturally, more appealing on hot summer days. Some machines are self-service whilst others require customer assistance. Slush is usually served in a disposable plastic cup or tumbler with a straw or spoon, which makes it an excellent and convenient ready to go beverage.
With nearly 20 different flavours there is a favourite slush for everyone, especially children, and with the advent of new technology and cheaper components, some manufacturers are now producing machines for home use for maximum consumer convenience.
Making Slush
Slush is quite different from other frozen beverages as it never freezes to the point where it becomes solid. This is due to syrup that is added to water at a specified ratio, which is then mixed and cooled to freezing temperatures in the slush puppy machine. The slush syrup consists of, amongst other ingredients, water, flavourings, sugar, glycerine and citric acid and it is the sugar content of the syrup (around 18 percent of the syrup mixture) that prevents the slush from freezing completely.
The modern slush puppy machine is quite simple to operate and will perform the necessary function of correctly freezing the syrup/water mixture, which usually requires 30 to 60 minutes depending on the amount of slush required. However some machines made for home use may require crushed ice to be added since they do not have the ability to freeze the mixture to produce slush.
Buying A Slush Puppy Machine
If you are contemplating purchasing a new slush puppy machine, there are several different options. If you require a machine for home use then, for around £70, a Giles & Posner Retro Slush Maker might be ideal for you. However, if is your intention to buy a commercial machine for business use etc., then a single bowl Faby from Cab, or similar, would be an excellent choice but can cost in excess of £900. To reduce initial start up costs and to acquire profit viability, some distributors offer lease purchase or hire facilities on their machines.
Selling slush can be financially rewarding with gross profits of up to 75 percent. For example, one 200ml slush beverage is sold to the consumer at 80 pence each. To make and serve the slush the retailer incurs material costs etc., of approximately 20 pence producing an estimated gross profit of 60 pence.
For over forty years, the slush puppy machine, whether used at home or in businesses, have produced a unique and refreshing cool beverage that is appreciated by millions of people around the world with ever growing popularity. New machines have become more cost efficient and environmentally friendly to operate when compared with their predecessors twenty or even ten years ago.
The new Faby 1, 2 and 3 models from CAB have been designed to operate as slush machines, frozen yoghurt machines and sherbet machines. Milk products and alcohol based mixes can be used in the new Faby series. The ‘night mode’ function allows new Faby users to keep the slush mix chilled during the night whilst conserving electricity. Due to the choice of plastic panels, air flow through the unit is better than any other similar slush machines in its category. CAB’s vast experience in the slush machine market has produced a refrigeration system that has proved to be long lasting even in the toughest of working environments. Despite been easy to operate, clean and consume less power than other competitors equipment, the new CAB Faby models retain all of their characteristics of professional slush machines. The new Faby 1, 2 and 3 have received approvals such as CEE, CSA, ETL, GOST, NSF and UL etc., and be purchased in several combinations of colours and can be customized technically and/or aesthetically.