South Carolina Ice Cream Parlors

Beat the South Carolina Heat: Ice Cream and Other Frozen Confections

Most South Carolinians have fond memories of their childhood that includes getting an ice cream cone from an ice cream parlor or anxiously awaiting the telltale jingle of the ice cream truck as it rolled through your neighborhood. Regardless of the time of year—although ice cream was a great way to cool off during a hot, humid South Carolina summer—ice cream is a treat that virtually everyone loves. In recent decades other forms of frozen confections have also made their way onto the South Carolina market to compete with ice cream although none have yet taken its place. Ice cream and other ice cream-like products are still welcome treats.

Definition Of Ice Cream In South Carolina

Ice cream is a frozen dessert made from dairy products, such as cream or one of several substituted products allowed under U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations. These ingredients are then combined with myriad flavorings and sweeteners, the most prevalent of these being sugar. This mixture is stirred slowly while it gradually cools in order to prevent large ice crystals from forming. This results in a smoothly-textured product.

In South Carolina the term "ice cream" is sometimes used to mean frozen desserts and snacks in general. Legally, however, the term -ice cream” is reserved for frozen desserts and snacks made with a high percentage of milk fat. As we have seen, the Federal government regulates the use of these terms based on quantities of ingredients.

Facts About Frozen Desserts Sold In South Carolina

This category includes ice cream, ice milk, sherbet and frozen yogurt.

Ice cream has the highest milk fat and milk solids content. The milk fat content in ice cream usually ranges between 10 and 14 percent, but may be as high as 20 percent in specialty ice creams.
Ice milk (or low-fat ice cream) often has more sugar than ice cream, but its milk fat ranges from two to seven percent.
Sherbet also has less milk fat and milk solids than ice cream, but more sugar and usually contains fruit and fruit acid. Milk fat content of sherbet is between one and two percent.
Frozen yogurt is made from cultured milk and has less milk fat than ice cream and less sugar than sherbet.

The South Carolina Food And Cosmetic Act Regulates Ice Cream

South Carolina regulates food quality through the South Carolina Food and Cosmetic Act. The Food and Cosmetic Act is enforced by the Commissioner of Agriculture of South Carolina. The state Department of Agriculture also enforces and regulates the other types of food quality, while working in coordination with the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control to establish and enforce sanitary regulations for ice cream and other frozen desserts and other issues relating to milk or milk products.

The South Carolina Department of Agriculture or its agents have free access at all reasonable hours to any factory, warehouse, or establishment in which food is manufactured, processed, packed, or held for introduction into commerce or to any vehicle used to transport such food for the purpose of The Act defines misbranding in a manner consistent with federal regulations.

All milk and milk products used in the manufacture of ice cream, ice milk, frozen custard, or sherbet shall be pasteurized. Frozen desserts in South Carolina may not be sold from any container or cabinet that contains any other articles. In addition, the South Carolina Food and Cosmetic Act makes it unlawful to misrepresent the character or content of any frozen dessert. This means federal regulations regarding what can legally be sold as ice cream, frozen custard, frozen yogurt, sherbet, and low-fat ice cream are in effect in South Carolina, with all state retail establishments selling anything other than that which can legally be labeled ice cream posting a sign to that effect.

During each May, every manufacturer of frozen desserts in South Carolina must apply for a license from the state agriculture department, which shall issue the license, free of charge, if the manufacturing plant or facilities are sanitary. A South Carolina frozen dessert manufacturer’s license shall be suspended by the department if any frozen dessert is adulterated or misbranded.

How Ice Cream Is Made In South Carolina

The aforementioned ingredients in ice cream—dairy products (which give ice cream its legally mandated content of milk fat), flavors, and sweeteners are all cooled to produce this dessert. These ingredients, along with air incorporated during the stirring process, make up ice cream. Generally, less expensive ice creams contain lower-quality ingredients and more air, sometimes as much as 50% of the final volume.

There are other non-commercially produced ice creams in South Carolina that are artisan-produced, meaning they are usually handmade to incorporate very little air in the final product. Generally speaking, the high end ice creams have only three to 15 percent of air mixed in although some air is necessary to produce the signature smoothness found in ice cream.

Because most ice cream is sold by volume, it is economically advantageous for producers to reduce the density of the product in order to cut costs. Ice cream can also be hand-packed and sold by weight. The use of stabilizers in place of real cream and the incorporation of more air into the product decrease the fat and energy content of less expensive ice creams, making them more appealing to those on diets.

Sorbets In South Carolina

The first ice cream product invented in the Americas, the sorbet, was invented by native indigenous populations in Ecuador during the Incan occupation. The natives made the icy concoction by taking ice from the top of the Imbabura volcano using a large bronze pan, and juices added from various native fruit.

Sorbet, French for -sherbet,” contains a small amount of milk unless it is labeled as being non-dairy. Sorbet is a frozen dessert made from iced fruit puree and other ingredients. It can also contain alcohol because alcohol lowers the freezing temperature. This results in a smoother and softer texture product. Sorbet, unlike ice cream, has almost no air. This dense product is often served as low or no fat (sometimes three to four percent fat) as an alternative to ice cream. In South Carolina and across the United States the term "sherbet" is also used to describe sorbet. Both are used interchangeably in South Carolina. The FDA does not have a classification for sorbet as it is synonym for sherbet.

Low Fat Ice Cream In South Carolina

Low-fat ice cream has less than 10 percent milk fat and lower sweetening content or no added sweetener. Low-fat ice cream was once marketed as "ice milk" in South Carolina. Produced mainly for those looking to reduce the amount of fat in their daily diets, this trend towards -dieter’s ice cream” comes in several manifestations:

Reduced fat ice cream (two percent milk fat) has at least 25 percent less fat than regular ice cream per serving.
Low-fat (one percent milk fat) has three grams or less of fat per serving.
Light ice cream has at least 50 percent less milk fat than regular ice cream per serving.
Fat-free ice cream has less than one-half gram of fat per serving. These varieties of ice cream are geared toward market segments of people who want to reduce fat and/or sugar in their diets and can be found in any South Carolina grocery store.

Frozen Custard Products In South Carolina

Frozen custard is a frozen treat that is seen much less often today, although at one time in South Carolina it was more popular. Frozen custard is similar to ice cream, being made with the same ingredients but with the addition of eggs. Frozen custard contains no less than 10 percent milk fat and at least 1.4 percent egg yolk.

Custard also has much less air beaten into it than ice cream. Using a process called overrun, air is blended into the mixture of ingredients until its volume increases by approximately 20 percent, meaning only 10 percent of frozen custard is air. By comparison, ice cream may have an overrun as large as 100 percent—meaning half of ice cream is composed of air. The high percentage of butterfat and egg yolk also gives frozen custard a thick, creamy texture and a smoother, softer consistency than ice cream. Frozen custard is most often served at 26 degrees Fahrenheit (a full 16 degrees warmer than the 10 degrees Fahrenheit at which ice cream is served).

There are relatively few retail outlets for frozen custard in South Carolina. Rita’s Water Ice, a national frozen custard outlet, does have one located in Beaufort, S.C. Freddy’s Frozen, a Wichita, Nebraska chain, has reports of planning to expand to at least five locations in South Carolina.

Frozen Yogurt Products In South Carolina

Frozen yogurt is an ice cream alternative sold in South Carolina and made from or containing yogurt. Frozen yogurt is served as a low-fat or fat-free and sometimes sugar-free alternative to ice cream. Frozen yogurt may or may not contain active yogurt cultures. Typically, frozen yogurt will contain low- or no-fat yogurt, sweetener, gelatin, corn syrup for sweetening, coloring, and flavoring. Frozen yogurt, which is made like ice cream in an ice cream machine, both freezes and melts much slower than ice cream since yogurt has a much lower milk content.

Although there are some independent South Carolina ice cream parlors that sell frozen yogurt, much of the product is sold in the Palmetto State by national chains such as TCBY.

Proper Home Storage Of Ice Cream In South Carolina

When purchasing ice cream and other frozen desserts at the store, make sure they are frozen solid and that the container is not sticky or frosted which indicates it has partially thawed at some point. Request that the ice cream be placed in an insulated bag or be double bagged to reduce melting on the way home. Ice cream may be stored unopened for up to two months at 0 °F or below. However, if it will be stored longer than one month, it is best to over-wrap the original container with freezer paper or wrap.

Once the container has been opened, place plastic wrap over the surface of the ice cream to minimize the development of large ice crystals and the loss of its creamy texture. Use ice cream within seven to ten days for best quality. Each time the ice cream is removed from the freezer, and the surface begins to thaw, the ice cream loses quality. If ice cream or other frozen dairy products thaw completely, they should be discarded because of the danger of bacterial growth.

Ice cream is one of the truly simple indulgences that add to the quality of life in South Carolina. Find ice cream or other frozen confection stores and retailers across the state through various links found at www.icecream.sc.

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