When asked what some of their favorite things about Madison are, typical answers from students might include our beautiful campus, football, affordable health care and — of course — beer pong. The Rathskeller, State Street Brats and the Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival are all big elements of what makes Madison one of the most dynamic college towns in the United States. But what really sets Madison apart from other Big Ten schools is our homemade Babcock ice cream.
Babcock Hall Dairy produces 80,000 to 100,000 gallons of ice cream per year, or between two and 2.4 gallons per student. Their ice cream line includes 25 regular flavors, with many new and innovative flavors being produced constantly. However, while Madison students are privileged enough to enjoy this world-class ice cream, there is a small but growing number of students who will never be able to try every delicious flavor. Because of one ingredient — gelatin — vegetarians and some Jewish and Muslim students are unable to savor union utopia or orange custard chocolate chip (among other varieties).
Gelatin, a colorless and odorless gelling agent, is an animal byproduct made from the acid treatment of pig skin, cow bones and hides and some “other” substances as well. Found in Jell-O as well as marshmallows, gummy worms, gummy bears and most yogurts, gelatin is used as a thickening agent for textural purposes. It gives the texture of fat while adding far fewer calories. For these reasons, gelatin seems like it would be a perfectly harmless addition to Babcock ice cream, and perhaps even beneficial (because who doesn’t want to cut down on calories?)
However, vegetarians who protest the unfair treatment of animals cannot enjoy most Babcock ice creams. For some Jewish students, the ice cream fails to follow strict kosher dietary guidelines, which state that meat and dairy (or in this case their byproducts) cannot be consumed together. Some strictly orthodox Jews may indeed have separate kitchens for preparing meat and dairy meals or may wait between one and six hours after eating one to consume the other. Obviously, Babcock ice cream is not kosher, or fit for consumption per traditional Jewish dietary guidelines. Furthermore, Islamic dietary laws forbid the consumption of pork, which is deemed unclean. Since pork products make up the majority of gelatin production, Babcock ice cream is out of the question for our Muslim students as well.
Of course, the manufacturers of Babcock ice cream do not intend to leave such important student demographics without delicious dessert. Out of consideration for vegetarians, Jews, Muslims and others, they produce Babcock super premium ice cream — conveniently priced 35 cents higher. While this is not an earth-shattering inconvenience for such students, it is a little bit annoying.
Super premium, in addition to costing more, only carries a few flavors, which pale in comparison to all the choices gelatin-eaters get. And how saddening is it to have to say no to a friend that offers you a bite of their chocolate chip peanut butter? Obviously, as farmers and scientists, the producers of Babcock ice cream look for the most efficient and cost-effective way to make a great product. This, naturally, involves using gelatin. They don’t deliberately aim to discriminate by charging a higher rate for super premium; they just aim to get the return needed. This, however, does nothing to help students like myself — a long time vegetarian — who long to try the jump around flavor.
There are several cost-competitive alternatives to gelatin, including pectin, which is mainly extracted from citrus fruits, and several types of seaweed polysaccharides with properties similar to gelatin. (Don’t worry — one of the properties they all share is tastelessness!) While this may increase the cost of producing the ice cream, Babcock manufacturers can combat this by raising the price of ice cream to make it consistent with super premium prices.
While the producers at Babcock might fear losing some business, it is highly unlikely a 35 cent price raise will deter most customers from buying the central culinary joy of our campus. But even if they did lose some business, that might be made up for with the new customers they gained from making all Babcock ice cream kosher, halal and vegetarian-friendly.
Babcock Hall Dairy has a reputation for quality, creativity and ingenuity. With ever-changing production methods, dairy science students are fast learners who embrace what the future has to offer for the improvement of their profession. By transitioning to gelatin-free ice cream, Babcock has another opportunity to do what they do best and use alternative methods to produce superior results. As a student, I cannot wait to see what they have in store for us next. And as a vegetarian, I can only hope one day I’ll be able to order two scoops of blue moon and eat them while sitting in the sunshine on Bascom Hill. I want to be able to enjoy ice cream the best way — the Madison way.
Taylor Nye ([email protected]) is a freshman majoring in English, French and Spanish.
