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While dairy products on supermarket shelves appear calm and orderly, in other parts of the world, they spark massive fires and lead to bizarre experiments. From yogurt developed in outer space or originating from personal regions to cheese grown to the sound of music, dairy research knows no bounds.
The world of dairy is also highly competitive. Debates over the use of the term “milk” have led to heated arguments, and the margarine conflict was an odd chapter in culinary history. Dairy alternatives are also getting weirder, like cockroach milk, which some believe could be a solution to global hunger.
10. Jamaicans Created Chocolate Milk
Every year, New York City lunchrooms serve a staggering 60 million cartons of chocolate milk. This figure doesn’t even account for sales in supermarkets, cafeterias, or vending machines.
According to the Natural History Museum in Britain, a man named Sir Hans Sloane is credited with inventing the beloved drink. A botanist from Ireland, he was working in Jamaica during the early 1700s when he was offered cocoa by the locals. Finding the drink “nauseous,” he mixed it with milk. The result was pleasant enough to bring back to England, earning him the title of the inventor of chocolate milk.
However, this story is not entirely accurate. Historian James Delbougo pointed out that Jamaicans were already brewing a mix of cacao, milk, and cinnamon as early as 1494. This spicy concoction should rightly give Jamaica the credit for chocolate milk’s invention.
There’s even a possibility that chocolate milk’s origins go further back in history. After all, the earliest recorded mention of chocolate dates back to 350 BC, making it hard to believe no one had thought of mixing it with milk long before.
9. The Definition of Milk
In 2018, the milk industry became upset over the use of the word 'milk' for plant-based alternatives. Producers of animal-based dairy products argued that such terms were misleading. To resolve the issue, they turned to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which sided with them, agreeing that the term 'milk' should not be used for plant-based liquids, though most consumers are aware that soy milk is made from beans, not goats.
The situation escalates further. If the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) has its way, it could pressure the FDA into banning the use of the word 'milk' for any non-dairy products that attempt to resemble real milk.
These plant-based alternatives like ice cream and milk aren't part of a conspiracy against cows. Many people who adore dairy products cannot consume them due to allergies, lactose intolerance, or vegan choices. Products like soy milk and others offer these individuals a chance to enjoy dairy-like experiences.
Nevertheless, the NMPF might have a valid concern in claiming that these substitutes are borrowing from the health image associated with real milk. After all, terms like 'nut juice' don't quite have the same appeal as 'coconut milk' or 'almond milk.'
8. 3-D-Printed Cheese
People are fascinated with 3-D printing. It was only a matter of time before someone thought, 'Why not try this with cheese?' 3-D printing works by pushing a material, such as gel or paste, through a nozzle to create a desired shape. Given cheese's ability to shift between solid and pliable states, it seemed like a perfect candidate for this method.
In a recent experiment, scientists discovered that processed cheese was the ideal choice. This was probably due to the fact that the process used to make regular processed cheese closely resembles the 3-D printing process, where ingredients are mixed and molded into new shapes. The team heated the processed cheese to 75°C (167°F) for several minutes and then pushed the molten cheese through a syringe at different speeds.
The 3-D printed cheese was compared to regular processed cheese, and while it was darker in color for some unknown reason, it turned out to be up to 49% softer. It was also more springy in its solid state and, when melted at the same temperature as conventional processed cheese, it became noticeably gooier.
Unfortunately, the samples were too small to taste, but there’s no reason to believe that the flavor would differ from regular processed cheese.
7. The Most Genuine Imitation Milk
Milk alternatives are typically made by extracting liquids from almonds, rice, and soybeans. The downside is that these alternatives are extremely water-intensive. For example, producing almond milk requires approximately 5 liters (1.3 gallons) of water for each almond.
In 2016, a groundbreaking company introduced a new product that could serve as a substitute for both real and plant-based dairy. What sets this creation apart is that it is still made from milk proteins, though it doesn’t come from cows.
Instead of sourcing these proteins from cows, scientists engineered a strain of yeast that transforms sugar into casein, the key milk protein. If successful, this innovation will taste almost identical to conventional milk, while being free of lactose and cholesterol and retaining the full nutritional benefits of regular dairy.
Producing this cow-free beverage results in 84% less carbon emissions compared to traditional dairy farming methods. Additionally, the new technique uses 98% less water. Since it's produced in a lab, it also requires minimal land. In short, this process addresses environmental concerns effectively, a crucial factor often overlooked in large-scale food production.
6. The Tunnel Fire
In 2013, a strange event began with a cheese delivery. A truck driver was assigned to deliver 30 tons of brunost, a Norwegian delicacy known for its sweet, caramelized brown color.
As the truck entered the Brattli Tunnel in northern Norway, a fire sparked unexpectedly. Upon realizing the cheese was on fire, the driver abandoned the vehicle inside the tunnel.
The goat cheese kept the flames alive for five days. Toxic gases filled the tunnel to such a degree that firefighters couldn't safely enter. The resulting damage forced the tunnel to remain closed for months.
The shocking reality is that cheese can catch fire, but brunost is especially flammable. It has more sugar than most cheeses and contains up to 30 percent fat. This combination of high fat and sugar allows it to burn like gasoline when exposed to heat.
The fire from the cheese couldn’t be extinguished by regular water; instead, it required the chemical mist of a Class K fire extinguisher.
5. Vaginal Yogurt
In 2015, researcher Cecilia Westbrook set out to make yogurt using bacteria from her own vagina. She swabbed her private area with a wooden spoon and let it sit overnight in a bowl of milk. The resulting yogurt had a tangy, sour taste and left her tongue tingling.
While this might sound absolutely insane, Westbrook realized that there was a lack of research on the vast number of bacteria residing in the vagina. Most studies focus on the benefits of gut bacteria for health. Some microbiologists, however, are so familiar with the positive effects of vaginal bacteria that they even apply it to their newborns.
Although eating the yogurt might have been too risky (since there are harmful genital bacteria as well), other researchers were inspired to continue with more controlled experiments. Soon, they confirmed that bacteria could indeed be cultured from the human vagina. The future applications of this 'yogurt' are more medicinal than culinary, especially in treating probiotics and yeast infections.
4. Margarine Smear Campaign
When France invented margarine in 1869, it offered a cheap alternative to butter. It quickly became popular in the United States, where dairy farmers launched a harsh campaign to discredit it. They claimed margarine was unhealthy, caused mental illness, and threatened the very moral fabric of society. Worse still, it was seen as a threat to the American way of life.
The campaign's accusations about dubious sources for margarine's ingredients were so effective that the 1886 Margarine Act was passed. It was the first of many laws aimed at taxing the butter substitute to death.
The margarine industry nearly collapsed as a result. Cartoonists joined the fray, depicting margarine makers as sneaky individuals who were adding harmful ingredients like arsenic and even stray cats to their products.
In one of the most absurd moments, New Hampshire passed a law that margarine had to be colored pink. The peculiar hue made the product less appealing, leading to a sharp decline in sales. However, defying the 'pink law' could land you two months in jail. Ultimately, the Supreme Court ruled that the law was ridiculous and overturned it.
Though margarine survived this bizarre period, the debate between margarine and butter continues, with people still divided on their preference.
3. The Next Superfood
Feeding the growing global population calls for unconventional thinking. In 2016, researchers ventured out of the box and into the world of insects, specifically to a place called Cockroach City.
While cockroaches aren't the most appealing creatures, a species named Diploptera punctate may hold the key to solving world hunger. This roach nourishes its young with a milk protein crystal, and here's the surprising part: a single crystal contains three times more energy than buffalo milk, which is already more nutritious than cow's milk.
Since it's not practical to milk a cockroach, scientists isolated the genes responsible for producing the crystal. The next step is to attempt to recreate these genes and the milk in a laboratory setting.
This effort could prove to be extremely valuable. The crystals are a complete food source, packed with fats, sugars, and proteins. They also contain all the essential amino acids and release more protein as they are digested. For those in need of a dense energy source that keeps giving long after consumption, this could be the ideal supplement.
2. Musical Cheese Flavors
In 2018, Beat Wampfler might have seemed out of his mind when he presented his idea to Michael Harenberg. Wampfler was a veterinarian by profession, with cheesemaking as a hobby, and he suggested to Harenberg that music might have an impact on the flavor of cheese. Harenberg, as the music director at Bern University of the Arts, was used to more conventional approaches to musical experiments.
Wampfler's passion prevailed. Alongside a team from Bern University, they aged nine Emmental cheese wheels in a cellar for six months. Each wheel was placed in its own crate, and each listened to a continuous loop of a single song.
The “rock” crate was filled with the sounds of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” The classical wheel was treated to Mozart’s The Magic Flute, while Vril’s “UV” produced a techno cheese, and the ambient wedge found peace in Yello’s “Monolith.”
The other cheeses were used as silent controls or were exposed to individual notes. But it was the hip-hop cheese that stole the show with the most distinct flavor. This particular wheel was subjected to A Tribe Called Quest’s “Jazz (We’ve Got).”
1. Space Yogurt
In 2006, a rocket took off from the Baikonur Cosmodrome carrying two very unusual passengers. Himawari Dairy from Japan had sent two strains of bacteria into space. These strains are used in the production of dairy products.
The bacteria strains included lactic acid bacteria and a special strain of Lactobacillus paracasei. The hope was that the cosmic radiation would somehow enhance the flavor and immune-boosting properties of the yogurt produced from these bacteria.
After spending 10 days in space, nearly half of the fragile bacteria perished. The surviving ones returned to Earth and made yogurt. Himawari Dairy boasts that the bacteria that endured the space journey contributed to a yogurt with a more intense flavor than those made with typical Earth-grown bacteria. They've even named it 'Uchu O Tabi Shita Yogurt' ('yogurt that traveled in space').
