The Bûche Lambert — a boxed ice-cream version of the traditional Yule log — has been a mainstay of Quebecers' Christmas feasts for six decades, but it won't be gracing dinner tables this holiday season.

The Lachine-based company that makes the iconic ice-cream log, Produits Plaisirs Glacés, declared bankruptcy on Nov. 18, ending a 60-year run and putting about 60 employees out of work.

"Most of the people from my generation were raised with the Bûche Lambert. Unfortunately, it's going to disappear from store shelves forever," said Roger Morin, president of Plaisirs Glacés, in an interview with CBC's French-language network, Radio-Canada.

Tough time for 'small player'

Morin held back tears as he talked about the company's hard times.

"It was a Quebec flagship.… I would have liked to keep the tradition, but sometimes, you have to face a certain reality."

Morin called his former company as a "small player" in a difficult dessert market, saying that sales were not meeting expectations.

The company had previously declared bankruptcy in 2010, and Bûche Lambert ice-cream Yule logs were off the market for a year before it was able to relaunch.

In the interim, Morin said, competitors introduced their own Christmas logs, costing the small company market share and making it difficult for Plaisirs Glacés to find its footing again after it reopened.

Quebecers react

A nostalgic wave of posts hit social media in Quebec following the announcement of Lambert's disappearance from grocery store freezers.

"Sad. The Bûche Lambert found its way on our Christmas table when I was a child," posted Caroline Rondeau.