Starbucks 'Trenta': How The New Size Compares To Your Stomach
Famous Death Row Last Meals
.jpg)
Okay, I'm going to get something out in the open here: I am somewhat biased when it comes to Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Just in case the title of this post wasn't enough to make my feelings clear, I want you to know that, from where I stand, the famed ice cream makers share moral ground with Kim Philby, John Walker, and Robert Hanssen. In my house, we don't use the term "Benedict Arnold." For us, the gold standard of betrayal takes the form of two Vermont pseudo-hippies, and the phrase "You're a total...Ben and Jerry!" can be the prelude to a massive battle royale.Even so, I'll try to be fair.
When I was a kid, long before Ben and Jerry's became a household term, I met the pair at a book show in Washington D.C. They were hawking their ice cream cookbook and, as a young cook and avid bibliophile, I eagerly snapped up the signed first edition of their tome. Although I left the DC convention center that day with several huge bags of books, Ben and Jerry's slim volume was in my lap, and I read it and reread it repeatedly over the next few days.
Although it was to be a long time before Ben and Jerry's came to our neck of the woods, I mixed up several of their recipes in my little ice cream maker. I loved them all. In Massachusetts, where my family spent our summers, B&J's was available in a few of the markets, so my sisters and I were able to try out a few of the famous flavors. We absolutely adored them.
One of the best things about Ben and Jerry's was always the emphasis on natural ingredients and the TLC that the pair famously put into every batch. For that reason, I continued to have total loyalty to them, trusting that my ice cream would be free of foul additives, produced with the kind of love that only a couple of tubby Vermont hippies could provide.
In 2000, however, Ben and Jerry's sold out to Unilever, owners of such premium brands as Slim-Fast, Aqua-Net, Ponds, and Vaseline. Although the packaging and the hippy-dippy homestyle messages remained consistent, I began to notice that the ice cream was not quite so pure. High fructose corn syrup reared its ugly head, as did a few other commercial additives. I soon realized that the sincere dessert that I had grown to love was a thing of the past. In 2005, when my wife, who is allergic to HFCS, was pregnant and craving Chubby Hubby, I had to break out the ice cream maker and whip up a batch. Ben and Jerry's had truly failed us.
In a recent interview with The Guardian, Jerry Greenfield admits that he and Ben deeply regret the decision to sell. However, he notes that, as a publicly-traded company, they had to bow to the wishes of their board of directors. When the board decided that the sale was in the best interests of the company, he and his partner had no choice but to go along. To his credit, he admits that he "sold out," but notes that "If you happen to believe what Ben & Jerry's is supporting, then you should support the company [...] As Ben says to me all the time, it's better to stand for something."
I'm not completely heartless, and I can only imagine how painful it would be to have to let go of one's company and image. That having been said, I know that Unilever stands for profit. I have no idea what Ben and Jerry stand for.
Jane Seymour's Modest And Modern Style
Broke Stars: 11 Celebrities Who Went Bankrupt
LOOK: Amazing Underwater Photos Of Dogs
Adele Five-Year Break? Singer Plans to Focus on Relationship, Write 'Happy Record'
Social Security Is Failing Even Faster Than We Thought
PHOTOS: How You Can Get The 'Miracle' Dress
Man Says Starbucks Discriminated Against Him Because He Has Half An Arm
Chris Brown, Grammys 2012: Embattled Singer Slams Critics
Janice Dickinson's Outrageous Style
Ford's clever Sports Illustrated Swimsuit ad features phantom model
Trace Adkins Reunites With College Crush, 30 Years Later
Photos Of Dead Lacrosse Player's Injured Body Shown To Jury
3 Economic Misconceptions That Need to Die
Van Gogh's Starry Night modded into beautiful interactive light and sound show (video)
PHOTOS: Model Falls At Dennis Basso Show
'Hooker Teacher' Forced To Resign, Now Can't Find Work
Lauren Scruggs Goes On Ski Vacation
WATCH AND LAUGH: Cops In 2-Hour Standoff With Empty Car
Woman's Dead Fiance Is Behind Her Disappearance: Cops
Stephen Wiltshire Draws Cities From Memory
We Meant There WERE Nukes In The Fire
8-07-2008 @1:41PM Monika said... Wait.. Does this mean that you have a recipe for Cool Britannia? I still mourn the loss of that...
Reply
8-07-2008 @2:00PM Truthseeker said... Sad time in America. I have actually thrown out the last 3 half gallon's (they are really only 1.5 qts now) because the taste was so fake. It was name brand ice creams too. So, last week I bought a container of Ben and Jerry's, and was shocked at the lack of quality. It seems that the majority of our food is now contaminated with chemicals and HFCS. I think it was EDY's that we found on the front of the carton, instead of ICE CREAM it was called Frozen desert......not all of the flavors said that, but several did. Frozen Desert..they could not even call it ice cream!! If I have mistakenly said Edy's and it was another brand, I am sorry for the error, but I am sure if you look you will see it too. I do know it was a major brand name though.
I will have to try Starbucks, there coffee ice cream is wonderful..have not had it in a while, will surely have to check the ingredients first!
Reply
8-07-2008 @2:50PM phlipper said... You should look into Unilever a little more. Sure, it's a giant corporate entity, but for giant corporate entities they are not so bad. In fact, they are pretty good. My wife used to work for the Center for Corporate Citizenship at Boston College, and she did a lot of research. When I lamented the B&J sale, she made me feel at least a little better. Don't just assume that corporate giant = pure evil. HFCS = pure evil, though, and I agree that that's just wrong.
Reply
8-07-2008 @2:51PM Bruce Watson said... Monika-
No such luck, as the book came out before that particular flavor. Still, if you use the basic Ben and Jerry's sweet cream recipe and play around a bit, you might stumble across it!
Reply
8-07-2008 @2:53PM Bruce Watson said... Truthseeker-
There are a few ice creams that are relatively pure, but I'm saving most of my affection for Cold Stone Creamery! Also, if you get a chance, check out the Mexican frozen fruit bars that are out there. Many of them don't have any artificial ingredients. They aren't ice cream, but they definitely hit the spot on a hot day!
Reply
8-07-2008 @2:59PM Bruce Watson said... Phlipper-
To be honest, I think it's all been downhill since Ben and Jerry's went public. While selling stock is a great way to make tons of money, It's hard for me to think of a company whose products have actually improved after the company started having to worry about its stockholders. I'm sure that Unilever is better than most, but it's still a huge, transnational company, which means that it will cut corners in order to increase profit. While that might be good for the bottom line, it's terrible for those of us who came to love Ben and Jerry's' amazing products.
Reply
8-07-2008 @3:36PM rainey said... Echoing what Bruce said, get the book! It's got the recipe for the 2 basic bases they used to develop all their other flavors.
When I was on an ice cream-making jag last summer (I had no kitchen and I couldn't make much else) I doubled the recipe for their Sweet Cream Base and kept it in the fridge. That way, I could pour out a couple cups of it at a time and make as many different flavors as I wanted by varyiing the inclusions. I added fruit at will (macerate it overnight so the pieces don't become tooth-breaking rocks when frozen), liqueurs, and candy, cookie and cake bits. When I poured the frozen mixture into airtight containers to go in the freezer, I drizzled in syrups and fruit purées as well.
You don't have to pay what premium ice cream costs and you can have higher assurance of top quality.
Reply
8-07-2008 @3:41PM Dean said... Yeah, it's sad that B&J's has gone downhill. But at least Breyer's remains all natural. No HFCS, just good stuff. Not as rich as some of the more upscale icecreams, but darn tasty nonetheless.
Reply
8-07-2008 @3:51PM Astin said... All the Ben & Jerry shops in Toronto have closed down. I suppose they couldn't keep up with the Baskin Robbins and Dairy Queen behemoths... or the many other local gelato and ice cream shops that actually use real ingredients.
The sad truth of any small company that goes public is that eventually it loses its soul as profit and shareholder value become the targets, which usually means getting sold to someone bigger.
Reply
8-07-2008 @3:58PM Scott said... I did the Ben and Jerry's factory tour last year, and based on the information I learned there, I came to the following conclusion:
They're hippies. They made excellent ice cream, but when the business grew really big, they couldn't possibly run it. How many hippies do YOU know who could run a huge nationwide business and still find the time to smoke as much weed as they want? I'll bet none. So they sold it, and now can sit out in the countryside discussing philosophy or music or whatever with their hippie friends, and never have to worry about money, and smoke as much dope as they can imagine. The end.
Reply
8-07-2008 @4:00PM kaszeta said... Sadly, this sort of thing happens all the time.
Shortly after the Unilever purchase of B+J's, I remember an New Hampshire Public Radio interview with Gary Hirshberg, the founder and CEO of Stonyfield Farm organic yogurt. He talked about organic farming, yogurt, and their corporate vision. And, at the very end of the interview, chided B+J's by making a comment that "we're not going to sell out, like a certain Vermont-based ice cream company we all know."
Less than a year later, Stonyfield was bought by Group Danone (Dannon yogurt), and both product quality and commitment to ideals have suffered (albeit less than at B+J's).
Reply
8-07-2008 @4:26PM zerocalories said... Is this the book that people are talking about?
http://www.amazon.com/o/ASIN/0894803123/ansi-20/
I can't believe they use HFCS. =(
Reply
8-07-2008 @5:01PM Joy the Baker said... i worked at their flagship store in Burlington, Vermont in 2000 when the company sold. it was awfully sad. they did lose a lot of loyal staff that year, including myself- purists that love working for Ben and Jerry, not Unilever.
Reply
8-07-2008 @5:46PM Alex said... if your wife is allergic to HFCS isn't she allergic to pretty much any commercial food product? Most of it has corn products in it. OFf the top of my head is xantham gum, which is in almost everything haha.
Reply
8-07-2008 @5:47PM Bruce Watson said... Alex-
Fair point; a more accurate way of putting it would be to say that she is very sensitive to it. If she eats HFCS, she has an energy crash about a half hour later, which pretty much puts her to sleep. She also gets somewhat nauseated.
Needless to say, this was a major concern when she was pregnant!
Reply
8-07-2008 @6:14PM guest1234567 said... It's a bit harsh to call him a traitor. In fact, it's not just a bit harsh, it's shameful. The interview makes it perfectly clear that the decision was entirely out of his hands.
Reply
8-07-2008 @8:04PM rainey said... to zerocalories- Yup! That's it!
Reply
8-07-2008 @9:01PM ali said... I try to avoid HCFS and it's really hard.
I did discover that Edy's all Fruit Bars do not have HCFS but their ice cream does. Which is a shame.
Also Blue Bell ice cream which makes me sad as well.
But edy's all fruit bars do not and besides strawberry and raspberry they have coconut and tangerine.
Reply
8-07-2008 @9:54PM RT said... Bruce - saving your love for Coldstone? Really? Coldstone has to sell some of the worst ice cream; the flavors are subpar and the texture is gummy and elastic. I only think it tastes half decent when it's mixed with all the other stuff. If you want great ice cream, you have to go with Dr. Bob's:
http://www.drbobsicecream.com/
It's pricey, but oh so worth it. Their strawberry, brown sugar, and sour cream is my favorite ice cream period.
Vosges Haut Chocolate also makes great ice cream with nontraditional flavors.
By the way, all of Coldstone's ice cream uses corn syrup:
http://www.coldstonecreamery.com/assets/pdf/nutrition/Ingrediants_icecream_sorbet_06_19_08.pdf
Reply
8-07-2008 @10:55PM Lynsie said... I'm the owner of an ice cream company in Virginia. We make our ice cream from scratch-plain & simple. In fact, we're the first business to make ice cream completely from scratch in this state in 30 years. It is most likely that we're the only ones in the country making ice cream with this much integrity, and to answer the question that I know is coming-we never want to be big like Ben & Jerry's. Period.
We pasteurize our own raw milk from a farm 3 miles down the road in Waynesboro, VA. We separate the cream from the skim, and I crack 250 local eggs from Polyface Farm. The eggs are whipped with organic evaporated cane juice from Wholesome Sweeteners, and the whole shebang gets frozen into flavors that reflect the seasonal fruit, herbs, etc. that are grown right here in VA. We only use local and in-season flavorings, and for what we cannot get locally, like coffee, chocolate, vanilla, and sugar, we get strictly organically and fairly traded.
We had many reasons for investing all that we owned (my fiance and I run the business) into this little entreprise. One of them included our gross revulsion at what we read on the backs of B&J ice cream pints as well as others. It is sad, and sickening-not just revolting, but it IS actually making us sick. HFCS, gum carrageanan, fish gelatin (which for those of you who don't know is actually the hottest new thing in ice cream: cloned eel blood) are all "ingredients" that we wanted to PROVE were not necessary in ice cream. And we have done just that.
We sell our ice cream at our kitchen, which you can see by visiting our webcam. We sell in sizes ranging from a sample taste (2 oz) up to a pint (16). Our ice cream costs a lot to make, about 80 cents/ounce. We charge $1 an ounce. Not a sure way to make a quick buck, that's for sure. But...we believe in what we do.
If you go to our website, you'll notice that the front page displays our price for a gallon and half gallon online order. This is different than our retail price because it offers our customers a chance to design their very own flavor of ice cream, which is made by hand (by me) one batch at a time. We bake every goodie that goes into our ice cream on-site as well. From marshmallows to caramel to graham crackers to apple pie-we've got it all covered.
This business can never be structured to fit a corporate model, and that's just fine with us. We want actual humans, not machines, making our ice cream. Our company is Perfect Flavor. www.perfectflavor.com
Oh-and one more thing: ice cream should only have four ingredients-end of story, and in this order: cream, milk, egg yolks, sugar. If you see anything else, then start asking questions!
Reply