Tag Archives: Ice Cream

Making Hot Fudge Sundaes Healthier

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I love hot fudge sundaes–preferably with whipped cream, nuts, and a cherry. It looks like some upcoming changes in ice cream manufacturing will make my hot fudge sundae more healthy (at least a little more). There have already been changes in how the cherry on top of the sundae is colored–many manufacturers of cherries use red dye No. 3, which they must discontinue using by Jan. 15, 2027

On Monday, Investing.com reported:

U.S. ice cream makers are reportedly looking to eliminate several artificial colors from their products by 2028, a push following Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s stance to remove artificial additives from food.

This is part of Kennedy Jr’s “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) initiative to eliminate six petroleum-based food dyes by 2026, aiming to replace them with natural alternatives.

According to a Bloomberg report, citing the International Dairy Foods Association, a group of 40 producers, collectively responsible for more than 90% of the ice cream sold in the U.S. by volume, have pledged to remove synthetic colors voluntarily.

Several publicly traded U.S. companies produce ice cream, such as Unilever (LON:ULVR) (UL), which owns household names like Ben & Jerry’s, Breyers, and Talenti; General Mills (NYSE:GIS) which operates Häagen-Dazs in the U.S.; and Nestlé, through its Froneri joint venture, manages brands like Dreyer’s and Edy’s.

Obviously, ice cream is not going to become a health food, but this is definitely a move in the right direction. It is encouraging to me to see America taking steps to remove questionable substances from our food supply. I may not agree with Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., on everything, but I think he has the right idea about cleaning up America’s food supply.

Now They Are Coming For My Ice Cream

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The politically correct movement has reached new heights lately. Aunt Jemima, Mrs. Butterworth, the pretty young Indian lady on Land o’ Lakes butter, and Uncle Ben have all disappeared or are about to disappear. Now they are coming after Eskimo Pie.

Yesterday The Washington Examiner posted an article about the attack on Eskimo Pie.

The article reports:

Eskimo Pie is the latest brand to change its packaging amid calls for corporations to participate in the fight against racism.

The chocolate-coated vanilla ice cream bar will be changing its name and axing the cartoon image of an Alaska Native child that is featured on its packaging to reflect Dreyer’s commitment to racial equality.

“We have been reviewing our Eskimo Pie business for some time and will be changing the brand name and marketing.” Elizabell Marquez, head of marketing for Dreyer’s, told the Washington Examiner, adding that Dreyer’s is “committed to being a part of the solution on racial equality, and recognize the term is derogatory.”

The term “Eskimo” is considered derogatory because it was given to the indigenous peoples of Alaska and Canada by non-Inuit people and was said to mean “eater of raw meat.” The name, however, is thought to come from the French word “esquimaux,” which means “one who nets snowshoes.”

I am sorry if the indigenous people of Alaska and Canada are offended by Eskimo Pie. I suspect that the offense is not on their top ten list of priorities. If changing the name makes the manufacturers happy, so be it, but I really believe that this is much ado about nothing.

I Guess There Just Isn’t Any Truth In Advertising These Days

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Yesterday Hot Air posted an article about a recent lawsuit against ice cream makers Ben & Jerry. Ben & Jerry’s owners are liberals who very openly support liberal causes. Their advertising claims that in harmony with their ideas about the humane treatment of animals ans the environment, their ice cream is made from milk from happy cows. I never really considered the emotional well being of the cows that supplied the milk for my ice cream, but I suppose it is a somewhat valid concern. Well, evidently all of the milk does not come from happy cows.

The article reports:

Since most of this week in Washington is already shaping up to be a festival of the ridiculous, we may as well toss a few more logs on the bonfire. Up in Vermont, Ben & Jerry’s, the famously liberal ice cream company, is being taken to court over fraudulent advertising, along with its parent company, Unilever. But this suit has nothing to do with the quality or safety of their product. An environmentalist is suing them because of their advertisements claiming that their creamy products are made from milk from “happy cows.” Not so, says the plaintiff! Apparently, many of the cows are simply miserable.

Ben & Jerry’s and parent company Unilever are being sued for false advertising by an environmental advocate who claims the milk and cream used to make flavors like Phish Food are deceptively marketed as coming from “happy cows.”

In a complaint filed Oct. 31 in federal court in Burlington, Vermont, where Ben & Jerry’s was founded, environmental advocate James Ehlers accuses the company and Unilever of deceiving consumers who buy the ice cream because of its pastoral and progessive image.

“During the past several years, Unilever has breached consumer trust by representing the Ben & Jerry’s Products as being made with milk and cream sourced exclusively from “happy cows” on Vermont dairies that participate in a special, humane “Caring Dairy” program,” the lawsuit claims.

The complaint alleges that less than half of the milk used is from the “Caring Dairy” program.

The article explains the program (and the problem):

USA Today looked into the question and found that the Caring Dairy program is indeed real. In order to qualify, farms have to follow certain regulations for how the cows are raised and what sort of environmental “carbon footprint” the operation has. But it’s not all that large, with only 65 farms in the Netherlands and the United States qualifying.

Even if Ben & Jerry’s had cornered the market on all of them, they probably wouldn’t produce enough milk to meet their needs. The company claims they “hope” to work with more farms like these going forward, but it certainly sounds as if they’re not using 100% “happy cow” milk. So maybe the plaintiff is correct.

I am strongly in favor of treating animals humanely. However, I also believe that animals are not people. What we need here is a sense of balance.

Using A Nuclear Bomb To Kill A Fly

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The problem with the government is that it has no sense of proportion. Small problems easily escalate because the ‘powers that be’ take drastic action rather than sitting down with the parties involved and solving the problem. One recent example of that occurred in Carlisle, Massachusetts.

Carlisle, Massachusetts, is a small town of about 5,000 people located northwest of Boston. It was first settled in 1650. It is also the home of Great Brook Farm State Park, described at the New England Grown website as “Great Brook Farm State Park: Nature AND Ice Cream.” So what am I ranting about?

Yesterday the Lowell Sun (Lowell, Massachusetts) reported on recent events at the Ice Cream stand in the park:

Mark Duffy, who has operated the dairy farm at the state-owned park for 26 years and has a lease with the state to run the stand, said armed Environmental Police officers showed up at stand on Friday evening and stood guard throughout the weekend, turning away customers craving delectable sundaes and frappes.

To make matters worse, said Duffy, the shutdown happened right before the sunny Mother’s Day weekend.

Edward Lambert, commissioner of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, said the stand was closed after it was discovered construction had been done without local or state permits. The work, which expanded the stand, included construction on a barn built in 1910 that is adjacent to the stand, he said.

So what did Mr. Duffy do? According to the article:

Duffy offers guided barn tours at the farm from May to October. The building improvements in question were made to create an area to show an instructional video produced by the Massachusetts dairy industry, said Duffy.

I also live in a small town in Massachusetts. I totally understand the need for building permits–we have pulled permits when we have done work on our house. I also understand that depending on the nature of the work, an accord could probably have been reached without putting a man’s business in jeopardy. How many people will lose their jobs because someone did not take the time to negotiate before acting. In my humble opinion this looks to me as if someone used a nuclear weapon to kill a fly. It was totally unnecessary overkill. 
 

 

 
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