Real Scoop

When Emperor Nero received a shipment of mountain snow for his royal ice cream in a state of slush, he executed the general in charge. When Baltimore Milkman Jacob Fussell first began mass-producing the ancient delicacy in 1851, he started a U.S. industry that today leads all the world. But though Americans down about 3 billion quarts of ice cream annually, the U.S. Government--unlike Nero--has never had any control over the quality of the industry's product. Last week the Food and Drug Administration finally issued a code to regulate everything from quality "French" to the "ice milk" sold at roadside stands.

Some minimum standards: P: At least 10% milk fat and 20% milk solids for all ice cream. 2% to 7% milk fat for ice milk, both higher than some current brands.

P: A weight of 4.5 Ibs. per gallon to hold down the amount of air manufacturers whip into their product. P: A minimum of 1.6 Ibs. of solid substance per gallon to avoid too much water and not enough cream. P: Real fruit flavors for sherbets and water ices. Artificially colored products must be clearly labeled.

Most important, the new rules clamp down hard on the numerous additives used in mass ice-cream making. FDA approves the continued use of such lump-preventing stabilizers as gelatin, locust-bean gum, sodium alginate, guar-seed gum and extract of Irish peat moss. But it frowns on any further use of alkaline neutralizers, e.g., baking soda, which some producers use to sweeten up sour milk and cream, make it palatable. Totally banned: certain acid emulsifiers that make ice cream smooth by breaking down the barrier between fat and water. While approving chemicals that occur naturally in food, FDA rejected all synthetic emulsifiers (monoesters of polyoxyethylene sorbitan, monoesters of polyoxyethylene glycols, etc.), which have long since been excluded from salad dressings and bread but are still being used in ice cream. In animal experiments, scientists found that such synthetics have dubious effects, including diarrhea and kidney stones.

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