Ghirardelli doesn't actually make ice cream though. I thought it was Dreyer's.
Milk is always the first ingredient unless you're talking a super-heavy ice cream like Ben & Jerry's. I don't think Dreyer's has gone downhill at all. At least they're not like Breyer's (Unilever) that's increasingly making stuff [edit] that can't even be called "ice cream" by law. I am kind of ticked off at how Nestle has altered the standard size from a half gallon, then to 1.75 quarts, and now 1.5 quarts. Then many of the other retailers followed by downsizing.
Nope, not just super premium. Milk as the first ingredient is/was NOT the norm for regular ice cream. It came along with the 1.75 then 1.5 quart sizes. There are still brands that use more cream, including several store brands. Cream should always be the first ingredient.......it's ice cream.