Canadian company becomes world leader in exporting ice

Canada may seem like a cold desolate place to many people around the world and while Canadians know this isn't the case, there's some truth to the stereotype.

When companies in Dubai and the Greek island of Rhodes wanted to create ice lounges they looked to an Ontario company that's the world leader in exporting frozen water.

Iceculture co-founder Julian Bayley travelled to Dubai last month to oversee installation of an ice restaurant before heading to Rhodes for the same purpose.

"We carve it in our studio. We put it all together and we take it apart," says Bayley to the Globe and Mail. "And in theory, it should go together like Lego."

In addition to expanding the business to create full lounges, the company also creates sculptures for weddings and corporate events.

It created the 2,000-block Pontiac Ice Maze for the Canadian Auto Show in 2005 that made it to the Guinness Book of Records. While workers still use hand chisels to create the sculptures, they also use a computerized 3D carving system for sophisticated jobs.

The company started when Bayley acquired a machine that made ice punch bowls. He then discovered a machine that makes crystal-clear blocks and purchased one of them.

Now the company owns 150 of those machines. At one point before the recession hit, it was exporting $5-million of ice annually, but sales have since been cut in half forcing Iceculture to move look at new markets. This includes the new ice lounges being installed in locations normally known for their heat.

Iceculture produces about 25,000 blocks a year and ships them all over the world to places like South Africa, Australia, Japan, Norway and ironically, Iceland.