Ice cream is an excellent example of food as a legitimate topic for discussion. This flavorful frozen dessert has caused many people to rethink their notions about cold desserts and has given birth to a colorful dialect. From buying ice cream at a local parlor as a kid to buying it for yourself as an adult, ice cream has brought comfort to millions of individuals throughout the years. And now you can talk about just exactly how great ice cream is, with these interesting facts about ice cream.

1. World’s Largest Ice Cream Cake

Although exceedingly simple, the Dairy Queen ice cream cake has had a long-standing reputation for its deliciousness. This reputation was cemented by Guinness World Records when it named a Dairy Queen ice cream cake the world’s largest ever in 2011 on the ice cream company’s 30th birthday.

The cake used more than 20,000 pounds of ice cream, 200 pounds of sponge cake, and 300 pounds of icing and OREO crumble—breaking the previous record by almost 500 pounds. [1]

2. More than 90 Percent of US Households Eat Ice Cream

Ice cream is a favorite treat for many people. In fact, about 10 percent of the milk produced by US dairy farmers goes into making ice cream! Ice cream’s popularity is so widespread that over 90 percent of households in the United States eat it. [2]

3. Americans Eat the Most Ice Cream between April and July

In the US, July is National Ice Cream Month, and the third Sunday in July is National Ice Cream Day. Ironically, the coldest months are actually the best for ice cream sales, but it makes sense if you think about it: what could be better on a hot summer day than a big scoop of cool and creamy ice cream? [11]

Also, since time immemorial (or at least since the advent of cheap home refrigeration in the 1930s), people have liked to gather around food at special events like holidays, birthdays, and family get-togethers. As a result, people tend to eat more ice cream in July because they’re eating more meals together with family or friends. During this month, there are numerous holidays on which people can enjoy an extra scoop of ice cream. For example:

• 4th of July—Independence Day
• 5th of July—National Bikini Day (celebrating its 67th anniversary)
• 12th of July—National Pecan Pie Day
• 16th of July—World Snake Day
• 24th of July—National Tequila Day (celebrating its 15th anniversary)

4. It Takes About 50 Licks to Eat a Scoop of Ice Cream

How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop? Well, that depends on your tongue and how hard you lick. The same goes for ice cream scoops. However, it takes approximately 50 licks to consume a single-dip scoop of ice cream served in a cup or cone. [3]

Of course, there are many variables at play here: the shape of the ice cream scoop (rounder is better), the size of the scoop itself (bigger is better), and even your own licking speed (slower is better).

5. Ice Cream is consumed by All Ages

Although ice cream is consumed by all ages, children (6 to 12 years old) consume around 62% percent while adults (ages 18-34) consume around 40% to 45%, according to the NPD Group. [4]

6. An Average Person Consumes Around 48 Pints of Ice Cream per Year in the USA

If you’re one of the many Americans who enjoys ice cream, you can take comfort in knowing that you’re not alone — according to a recent survey, at least one average person eats 48 pints of ice cream per year. [12]

7. The Most Popular Flavor of Ice Cream

Vanilla is the most popular flavor of ice cream—it accounts for about one-third of all the flavors sold at retail stores. Chocolate is second, followed by strawberry. Together these three account for about half of all the ice cream sold. According to Lexham Insurance 2022 data, chocolate ice cream is the most popular ice cream flavor now. [13]

8. The Invention of Ice Cream Cones

While most people are familiar with the idea that ice cream cones were probably invented at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, some evidence suggests that a similar product was commercially available from a New York City concessionaire named Italo Marchiony as early as 1896. [14]

The New York Herald published a recipe for something called an “ice-cream cup cone” in 1897, which seems like more than enough evidence to prove the existence of this product before anyone could have possibly heard about it at the World’s Fair.

9. Hot Dog Flavored Ice Cream Sandwich

Oscar Mayer released their unique frozen treat, the Ice Dog Sandwich. It’s a sweet and savory treat that combines sweet cream ice cream infused with a savory hot dog, real bits of candied Oscar Mayer wieners, spicy mustard gelato, and a cookie dog bun. [5]

10. World’s Largest Ice Cream Sundae

The largest ice cream sundae weighed 24.91 tons (54,917 lbs.) and was made by Palm Dairies Ltd in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, on 24 July 1988. [6]

11. One Cow Produces Enough Milk in Her Lifetime to Make A Little Over 9,000 Gallons of Ice Cream

A dairy cow can produce enough milk in her lifetime to make almost 9,000 gallons of ice cream. A cow has only one stomach with four areas where food is digested: the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum. It takes about 12 hours to digest food in a cow’s stomach. [7]

12. There’s a Fruit Called Ice Cream Bean

Hawaii is home to ice cream beans. They come in various sizes and have a cylindrical shape with raised ridges. The botanical name for ice cream beans is Inga edulis. These unusual pods grow on large trees that belong to the Fabaceae family. They are commonly 50 to 100 centimeters long. The fruit grows in Central and South America and tastes like vanilla ice cream when eaten raw – hence the name. [15]

The flavor of Ice Cream beans is delicate, sweet, and airy; the pulp is cotton candy-like in consistency and can be consumed straight out of hand. The pods can be broken open by hand, making them ideal for fresh applications.

13. National Ice Cream Month

Ice cream is such a beloved food that July was declared National Ice Cream Month by President Ronald Reagan in 1984.

In July, when temperatures are at their highest, Americans celebrate National Ice Cream Month by enjoying their favorite frozen treat with family and friends.

14. The Most Popular Ice Cream Topping

The most popular ice cream topping is a chocolate syrup (37%), followed by sprinkles (35%). Strawberry is the third most popular topping but only at a paltry 14%.

15. The Largest Producer of Ice Cream in the US

California is the biggest producer of ice cream in the United States, followed by Pennsylvania, New York, and Texas. When it comes to ice cream brands, Blue Bell Creamery, located in Brenham, Texas, is the largest producer of ice cream. It produces about 80 million gallons of ice cream each year. [16]

16. The Standard Ice Cream Machines Have Three Levers

There are two different types of standard ice cream machines – horizontal cylinder machines and vertical cylinder machines. Both types of machines work by churning the product at low temperatures. Vertical machines have three levers; one for the mix, one for the agitator, and another for the refrigeration unit.

17. The Ice Cream “Brain Freeze” Effect

The scientific name for the brain freeze is sphenopalatine ganglioneuralgia. When you eat ice cream, it touches a nerve (the trigeminal) in your mouth, which sends a message to your brain that says, “brrr! cold!” Your brain responds by sending blood away from your head to keep your body temperature down. But when you swallow the ice cream, the blood rushes back into your head and brings with it a sharp pain that lasts for about half a minute [17]

18. World’s Most Expensive Ice Cream Sundae

Pound for pound, the world’s costliest ice cream sundae, called Grand Opulence, is made with champagne and edible 23-karat gold leaf. It costs $1,000 to have it at Serendipity 3 restaurant in New York City. [8]

19. Chinese Royal Families Loved Ice Cream Desserts

The first ice cream-like dessert was enjoyed by the second century BC. Chinese royal family. This dessert consisted of a milk and rice mixture flavored with camphor which was frozen by packing it in snow. [18]

20. The Creation of Ice Cream Sundae

The ice cream sundae was created in 1881 when a man named George Hallauer asked his friend Ed Berners to serve him a dish of ice cream topped with cherry syrup on a Sunday. Although it was against the law to sell soda on Sundays, Ed served him this dish without hesitation as he didn’t feel selling ice cream was a sin! 

Later, George also started selling this dish on Sundays and thus, came into existence as the famous Ice Cream Sundae. [9]

21. Largest Scoop of Ice Cream

The largest scoop of ice cream weighed 3,010 lbs. and was created in Wisconsin on 28 June 2014. The strawberry-flavored ice cream scoop measured 6’ 2” high and 5’ 6” wide, containing about 733 containers of ice cream.

Thousands of people lined up all weekend to receive a generous serving of ice cream at the Cedarburg Strawberry Festival. [10]

Conclusion

Ice cream industry has been around for many centuries and is the most popular treat in the world. In the next few years, we will see ice cream makers experimenting and coming up with new flavors of all kinds. We can’t wait to taste them all but till then, enjoy these interesting facts about ice cream that you may not know of.

References

1. com. (2017, February 11). Guinness world records – World’s largest ice cream cake • Anyload weigh & measure. ANYLOAD Weigh & Measure. https://www.anyload.com/news/guinness-world-records-worlds-largest-ice-cream-cake/
2. Prairie fare: Enjoy some ice cream. (n.d.). Plone site. https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/news/columns/prairie-fare/prairie-fare-enjoy-some-ice-cream
3. Hayward’s ice cream. (n.d.). Hayward’s Ice Cream. https://haywardsicecream.com/ice-cream-fun-facts
4. http://www5.agr.gc.ca/resources/prod/Internet-Internet/MISB-DGSIM/ATS-SEA/PDF/6196-eng.pdf
5. Cash, M., & Burke, I. (2019, August 15). We tried Oscar mayer’s ‘Ice dog sandwich,’ which packs hot dog and mustard ice cream between two cookie buns. Insider. https://www.insider.com/oscar-mayer-taste-test-hot-dog-mustard-ice-cream-2019-8
6. Largest ice cream sundae. (n.d.). Guinness World Records. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/68413-largest-ice-cream-sundae
7. Ice cream facts – carpigianiuk. (n.d.). https://sites.google.com/site/carpigianiuk2/ice-cream-facts
8. World’s most expensive ice cream sundae — The latest scoop. (2019, December 13). Nuggs Ice Cream. https://nuggsicecream.com/ice-cream/worlds-most-expensive-ice-cream-sundae/
9. Who invented the ice cream sundae?(2005, June 20). ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-the-ice-cream-sundae-1991763
10. Largest scoop of ice cream. (n.d.). Guinness World Records. https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/largest-scoop-of-ice-cream
11. Ice cream sales & trends. (n.d.). IDFA. https://www.idfa.org/ice-cream-sales-trends
12. com. (2020, July 22). The average American eats 48 pints of ice cream a year. South Florida Reporter. https://southfloridareporter.com/the-average-american-eats-48-pints-of-ice-cream-a-year/
13. The top 10 most popular ice cream flavors. (2022, June 15). Food Channel. https://foodchannel.com/2022/the-top-15-most-popular-ice-cream-flavors
14. The history of the ice cream cone. (n.d.). IDFA. https://www.idfa.org/the-history-of-the-ice-cream-cone
15. Ice cream beans. (n.d.). Specialty Produce is San Diego’s Best Wholesale Distributor. https://www.specialtyproduce.com/produce/Ice_Cream_Beans_13018.php
16. Ice cream. (n.d.). The California Dairy Press Room & Resources. https://www.californiadairypressroom.com/Products/Ice_Cream
17. Brain freeze: What it is, symptoms, treatment. (n.d.). Cleveland Clinic. https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/21478-brain-freeze
18. The history of ice cream. (2013, June 16). Today I Found Out. https://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2013/06/the-history-of-ice-cream/