Penn State University Creamery
Encyclopedia
The Pennsylvania State University Creamery, often shortened to just Berkey Creamery or The Creamery, is a producer and vendor of ice cream
, sherbet, and cheese
, all made through the Department of Food Science in the College of Agricultural Sciences of the Pennsylvania State University
. It is the largest university creamery
in the United States
, using approximately 4.5 million pounds of milk
annually, approximately half of which comes from a 225-cow herd at the University's Dairy Production Research Center and the rest from an independent milk producer, and selling 750,000 hand-dipped ice cream cones per year. Offering over 100 ice cream flavors made with a butterfat
content of 14.1% and ingredients from around the country and the world, the Creamery's ice cream is enjoyed by many students and alumni every day.
and Altoona
, Pennsylvania
.
Ice cream makers Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield
of Ben & Jerry's
, are 1974 alumni of the Penn State Creamery correspondence course in ice cream-making Agriculture 5150, which teaches manufacturers the basics of ice cream production.
During the 1980s the Creamery was using three million pounds of milk per year, and in 2004, it supplied the Penn State dining halls with over 225,000 gallons of milk. That same year, it produced 200,000 pounds of cheese products and 225,000 gallons of ice cream and sherbet, both selling these products and providing them for university use.
Only U.S. President Bill Clinton
has been allowed to mix different flavors of Creamery ice cream. The Creamery normally does not allowing mixing of flavors (i.e., having scoops of different flavors in one cone / cup). The flavors President Clinton requested were Cherry Quist and Peachy Paterno. However, when Clinton returned after his tenure as the President, Creamery workers would no longer serve him mixed flavors.
The Creamery moved from its long-time home in Borland Laboratory location to a new location in the new Food Science Building at the intersection of Curtin Road and Bigler Road in 2006. The new Creamery is closer to Beaver Stadium
, the East Residence Halls dormitory complex, and a parking deck
. When the move was first announced, there were some student protests, but these protests eventually subsided.
There are five Creamery ice cream flavors that have remained the most popular in recent Creamery history: Vanilla, Bittersweet Mint, Peanut Butter Swirl, Peachy Paterno, and Butter Pecan. Several new coffee
and cookie
flavors of Creamery ice cream will be introduced soon after the Creamery's move to the Food Science Building.
The new creamery facility has been named the Berkey Creamery, in honor of the Berkey family who donated a large sum of money to the construction of the Food Sciences Building, which includes the new creamery facility.
Ice cream
Ice cream is a frozen dessert usually made from dairy products, such as milk and cream, and often combined with fruits or other ingredients and flavours. Most varieties contain sugar, although some are made with other sweeteners...
, sherbet, and cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
, all made through the Department of Food Science in the College of Agricultural Sciences of the Pennsylvania State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
. It is the largest university creamery
Creamery
In a dairy, the creamery is the location of cream processing. Cream is separated from whole milk; pasteurization is done to the skimmed milk and cream separately. Whole milk for sale has had some cream returned to the skimmed milk....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, using approximately 4.5 million pounds of milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
annually, approximately half of which comes from a 225-cow herd at the University's Dairy Production Research Center and the rest from an independent milk producer, and selling 750,000 hand-dipped ice cream cones per year. Offering over 100 ice cream flavors made with a butterfat
Butterfat
Butterfat or milkfat is the fatty portion of milk. Milk and cream are often sold according to the amount of butterfat they contain.- Composition :The fatty acids of butterfat are typically composed as follows :...
content of 14.1% and ingredients from around the country and the world, the Creamery's ice cream is enjoyed by many students and alumni every day.
History
The first Creamery was built in 1865, and dairy short courses were first offered in 1892. Ice cream became a part of football weekend tradition in 1896, when Creamery ice cream was first sold to the public. By 1932, the Creamery was buying milk and cream from hundreds of nearby farmers and was selling ice cream in both State CollegeState College, Pennsylvania
State College is the largest borough in Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Centre County. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 42,034, and roughly double...
and Altoona
Altoona, Pennsylvania
-History:A major railroad town, Altoona was founded by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1849 as the site for a shop complex. Altoona was incorporated as a borough on February 6, 1854, and as a city under legislation approved on April 3, 1867, and February 8, 1868...
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
Ice cream makers Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield
Jerry Greenfield
Jerry Greenfield is a co-founder of Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings, Inc.Throughout his childhood, Greenfield lived in New York, on Long Island. In 1969, he enrolled at Oberlin College, where he followed a pre-med curriculum before graduating in 1973...
of Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's
Ben & Jerry's is an American ice cream company, a division of the British-Dutch Unilever conglomerate, that manufactures ice cream, frozen yogurt, sorbet, and ice cream novelty products, manufactured by Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings, Inc., headquartered in South Burlington, Vermont, United...
, are 1974 alumni of the Penn State Creamery correspondence course in ice cream-making Agriculture 5150, which teaches manufacturers the basics of ice cream production.
During the 1980s the Creamery was using three million pounds of milk per year, and in 2004, it supplied the Penn State dining halls with over 225,000 gallons of milk. That same year, it produced 200,000 pounds of cheese products and 225,000 gallons of ice cream and sherbet, both selling these products and providing them for university use.
Only U.S. President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
has been allowed to mix different flavors of Creamery ice cream. The Creamery normally does not allowing mixing of flavors (i.e., having scoops of different flavors in one cone / cup). The flavors President Clinton requested were Cherry Quist and Peachy Paterno. However, when Clinton returned after his tenure as the President, Creamery workers would no longer serve him mixed flavors.
The Creamery moved from its long-time home in Borland Laboratory location to a new location in the new Food Science Building at the intersection of Curtin Road and Bigler Road in 2006. The new Creamery is closer to Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium
Beaver Stadium is an outdoor college football stadium in University Park, Pennsylvania, United States, on the campus of The Pennsylvania State University. It is home to the Penn State Nittany Lions of the Big Ten Conference. The stadium is named for James A...
, the East Residence Halls dormitory complex, and a parking deck
Multi-storey car park
A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...
. When the move was first announced, there were some student protests, but these protests eventually subsided.
There are five Creamery ice cream flavors that have remained the most popular in recent Creamery history: Vanilla, Bittersweet Mint, Peanut Butter Swirl, Peachy Paterno, and Butter Pecan. Several new coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
and cookie
Cookie
In the United States and Canada, a cookie is a small, flat, baked treat, usually containing fat, flour, eggs and sugar. In most English-speaking countries outside North America, the most common word for this is biscuit; in many regions both terms are used, while in others the two words have...
flavors of Creamery ice cream will be introduced soon after the Creamery's move to the Food Science Building.
The new creamery facility has been named the Berkey Creamery, in honor of the Berkey family who donated a large sum of money to the construction of the Food Sciences Building, which includes the new creamery facility.