It's always exciting when the curtain gets pulled back, and we gain a glimpse behind the scenes. Who doesn't love those extra clips from our favorite movie or TV show?
You know, the ones where we get to see the outtakes of actors making silly mistakes. Or the jokes that didn’t make the final cut.
Even more fun is the chance to see how our favorite film or show was made. How did they make those big explosions happen? Or how did they make the zombie make up look so real and convincing? Perhaps you always wanted to know how they filmed a scene in outer space?
Well, today, we pull back the curtain at Kisko—giving you a glimpse behind the scenes.
Have you ever wondered how your favorite Kisko treat is made?
You no longer have to wonder. We are giving you a little history of the family behind Kisko and how these legendary treats are produced.
How it all started
Kisko is truly a family-run business. Founders Leslie and Glenore Josephs started out of their kitchen in Kingston, Jamaica. The warm climate was a perfect setting for the original frozen treats. Our family was the first to introduce the classic sno cone to Jamaica, back in 1968.
But Leslie and Glenore wanted to make the legendary treat even more portable. This led them to package a treat like the sno cone into a tube-filled snack that they would eventually call a “freezie.”
Right from their very own kitchen, the Josephs made and packaged each freezie individually and by hand. Leslie bought a hand-sealing machine for the plastic tubes, which the family keeps in the office at the factory to this day.
In 1975, the Josephs family moved our company to Ontario, Canada. They introduced Kisko products to Canada in 1977. With the help of the entire family, Peter, Mark, and Randy all jumped into the family business. Peter even began joining his dad at the factory as early as the age of six years old.
We have grown into a much larger operation than our origins in the Josephs’ kitchen. But one thing has remained pretty consistent the entire time: a favorite family flavor. Each of the family members agrees that of the many delicious tastes from Kisko, they all still really love the Cream Soda flavor.
How freezies are made today
Kisko has come a long way from the manual, hand-sealing machine that remains in our office factory today. Our processes are now fully automated and distributed throughout the world. In 2005, we became the largest manufacturer of freeze pops in Canada.
Here’s how we make it happen!
- First and most important, we always make sure the lines that transfer our product recipe are regularly and consistently sanitized before the start of every production. Hygiene is of the utmost importance!
- Second, we set up the machines for success. This means we get them ready with the right materials. We set a machine with the film that makes the tubes, and then we put in place the cartons or bags for packing up the tubes.
- From there, we ensure the filling tubes are connected to the correct flavors—making sure each tube and every box is filled with exactly the flavors you love to enjoy.
- We always do an initial practice run to make sure everything is in place correctly. These runs are verified by Quality Control and the operators to ensure our high-quality standards are always being met.
- Once everything is verified as being totally top-notch, we set the machines to allow the product to flow from the mixing room to the device that fills each tube.
- The filling machine ensures each tube is full and then seals it to create a row of freezies. (Much faster than sealing each individually by hand in our kitchen!)
- These rows of freezies will travel on a conveyor belt, passing through a packing system that counts and packages a set number of freezies into each carton.
- Our carton of tasty treats then moves on to a machine that seals each box with tape.
- The cartons are then stacked onto a larger pallet and moved in bunches to be wrapped and transferred into inventory.
At this point, our freezies are only a few steps away from being directly in your hand!
It's an exciting journey that is filled with a lot of crucial and careful steps. But we haven’t forgotten the days of making freezies one-by-one with our hand-sealing machine back in the kitchen of our Jamaican home.
We make sure every freezie has the same high quality and tastes as delicious as ever!
A few closing thoughts
It has been our honor to find a way to make more freezies available for more people to enjoy. And we never sacrifice the love and dedication we have had since day one.
Your friends here at Kisko are happy to keep providing your family and friends with a timeless and cherished memory in our frozen and fruit treats.
