A Greenland-based startup, launched in 2022, aims to enhance the international experience by adding glacier ice, extracted from ancient fjords, into drinks sold at exclusive cocktail bars in Dubai.
According to the company’s website, “Arctic Ice is sourced directly from the natural glaciers in the Arctic which have been in a frozen state for more than 100,000 years. These parts of the ice sheets have not been in contact with any soils or contaminated by pollutants produced by human activities. This makes Arctic Ice the cleanest H20 on Earth.”
Arctic Ice is extracted ice from Greenland’s fjords and transported to the United Arab Emirates for sale in exclusive bars.
While the use of glacial ice in drinks is a common practice in Greenland, previous attempts by entrepreneurs to export it have been unsuccessful.
Co-founder Malik V Rasmussen highlighted that this millennia-compressed ice is entirely free of bubbles, melts at a slower rate than regular ice, and is purer than the frozen mineral water typically utilized in Dubai’s ice cubes.
Established in 2022, the startup recently sent out its initial shipment of 20 metric tonnes of ice.
However, it has faced unexpected and harsh criticism.
Social media commentary has been unfavorable, with remarks like, “Shouldn’t you be focusing on the impacts of global warming instead of selling glacier water?” or “What kind of dystopia is this?”
Some reactions, both public and private, have escalated to the extent that co-founder Rasmussen describes certain comments as “bordering on death threats.”
The company contends that its ice is both environmentally sustainable and holds social value.
Typically, the fjords surrounding Greenland are filled with icebergs that break off from glaciers connected to the Greenland ice sheet.
Arctic Ice utilizes a specialized boat equipped with a crane, to navigate the Nuup Kangerlua, the fjord around Greenland’s capital, Nuuk.
They specifically search for a type of ice that hasn’t touched either the bottom or top of the glacier. This particular ice, referred to locally as “black ice” due to its complete transparency, is purer and challenging to identify in the water.
“Helping Greenland in its green transition is actually what I believe I was brought into this world to do,” Rasmussen said. “We do have that agenda running through the company, but we may not have communicated it well enough yet.”
Rasmussen’s main objective, however, is to establish fresh revenue channels for Greenland, a region heavily reliant on Denmark, with Denmark’s annual grant constituting 55% of Greenland’s budget.
“In Greenland, we make all our money from fish and from tourism,” said Rasmussen. “For a long time, I have wanted to find something else that we can profit from.”