Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream

[01503]

http://www.wptz.com/news/17539127/detail.html

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals sent a letter to Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, cofounders of Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc., urging them to replace cow's milk they use in their ice cream products with human breast milk, according to a statement recently released by a PETA spokeswoman.

PETA officials say a move to human breast milk would lessen the suffering of dairy cows and their babies on factory farms and benefit human health.

"The fact that human adults consume huge quantities of dairy products made from milk that was meant for a baby cow just doesn't make sense," says PETA Executive Vice President Tracy Reiman. "Everyone knows that 'the breast is best,' so Ben & Jerry's could do consumers and cows a big favor by making the switch to breast milk.

I imagine that they'd get the milk from a sweatshop, with scores of women hooked up to a machine like cows.

Also, because cows are not as closely related to humans as other humans (genetically), doesn't that mean that we're much more likely to be prone to a disease from the woman that produced the milk? Isn't that how AIDS started? Eating monkeys? And I'm pretty sure that humans are more human than monkeys. (A is more A than non-A. ) This was my "WTF" moment of the day, thought I'd share it with you guys.

[softwareNerd]

PETA would like this chef.

[Ordr]

Hmm...are they hiring at that farm?

[Steve D'Ippolito]

Interesting--it claims that humans are not on the Swiss government list of approved species (for milk served and used in restaurants), nor are they on the list of specifically forbidden species such as apes and primates. Obviously this guy does not know his biology. If it says "apes" or "primates" (or both), well, biologically we fall into both of those buckets (apes being primates, and Homo sapiens being an ape).

[DoubleIPA]

Well cow milk contains the hormones, vitamins and whatever else for a baby calf that has four stomachs and which grows and matures very differently from a newborn human. Add to that cholesterol and the fact that parts of our population are lactose intolerant, maybe dairy isn't that great for us? Is there any other species on the planet which seeks out the milk from another species of animal other than its own if available?

[D'kian]

Is there any other species on the planet which seeks out the milk from another species of animal other than its own if available?

Sort of, but they're all our domestic animals.

Humans and some of our domestic animals are unique in being able to process lactose, a sugar found in milk. All other mammals loose the ability to digest it soon after weaning. Evolutionarily it makes sense because most animals won't have access to milk once their mothers stop nursing them. Humans evolved the ability because we can capture a cow, sheep or goat and milk it for our purposes. Some of the animals that have lived with us also developed that ability. Dogs love milk and dairy products, and as far as I know they can diget them just fine (my dogs did). But also rats and other parasites.

Again it makes sense. Aside from fresh milk, very early in history our ancestors figured out how to process milk into dairy products that could be preserved for long periods, particularly cheese. Meaning the animals that live with us get a nutritional payoff from being able to digest lactose.

Anyway, human milk would be incredibly expensive. For one thing women don't lactate year-round like dairy animals do, and they don't produce nearly the same volume. As a ball park guess, I'd say a gallon of ice cream amde of breast milk would go sell for no less than $100 US.

[DavidV]

Well cow milk contains the hormones, vitamins and whatever else for a baby calf that has four stomachs and which grows and matures very differently from a newborn human. Add to that cholesterol and the fact that parts of our population are lactose intolerant, maybe dairy isn't that great for us?

Cow milk probably isn't very good for a newborn human, but it's fine for an omnivore, who can eat the rest of the cow just fine.

parts of our population are lactose intolerant

Have you considered why the majority of people are lactose tolerant? From an evolutionary perspective, it wouldn't make sense to continue to produce an enzyme unless there was a survival benefit, and a long-term trend of widespread adult milk consumption.

Is there any other species on the planet which seeks out the milk from another species of animal other than its own if available?

If you're going to use "do only what other animals" do as a health guideline, you better go back to the jungle and eat only raw food. Are there any other animals that eat cooked meat?

[eriatarka]

I'd settle for them bringing back Dublin Mudslide because all their current flavours are rubbish compared to Haagen Dazs' :/

Edited September 24, 2008 by eriatarka

[D'kian]

If you're going to use "do only what other animals" do as a health guideline, you better go back to the jungle and eat only raw food. Are there any other animals that eat cooked meat?

Seen that way, it seems a silly question. But it's a useful question to make one think just how far and deep human mastery over the environment has come. We do a lot of things no other animals can do, like eat cooked food, preserved food, processed food, we live in stout shelters that keep us comfortable, we make our own entertainment in a myriad ways, etc, etc. and the only other animals that come close to that are either our livestock and our pets (and to a lesser degree our parasites, most notably rats and mice).

Consider dogs. They're fed either dog food, which is both cooked and processed, or table scraps, which are cooked. They learn to ride in cars, too, and some even enjoy going for a drive. Many live in our houses and even have their own beds and toys. They make friends with people as readily as with other dogs. And some of them even socialize with people (my dog comes to sit by the table when we're eating, for example, even if we don't feed her tidbits and sometimes she doesn't even beg).

In other words, dogs have adapted to live nearly like people do.

[K-Mac]

I'd settle for them bringing back Dublin Mudslide because all their current flavours are rubbish compared to Haagen Dazs' :/

Blue Bell Ice Cream is where it's at. If you're ever in Texas, be sure to try it. Any flavor at all is the best you will ever eat and a certain spoon-bender. The homemade vanilla is splendid with apple or cherry pie just out of the oven. (I think Outback Steakhouses serve it too, countrywide, but I can't find it at any retail stores outside of TX, unfortunately.) Also, if you're a coffee drinker, a (bent) spoonful of homemade vanilla in your coffee is divine!

[01503]

Blue Bell Ice Cream is where it's at. If you're ever in Texas, be sure to try it. Any flavor at all is the best you will ever eat and a certain spoon-bender. The homemade vanilla is splendid with apple or cherry pie just out of the oven. (I think Outback Steakhouses serve it too, countrywide, but I can't find it at any retail stores outside of TX, unfortunately.) Also, if you're a coffee drinker, a (bent) spoonful of homemade vanilla in your coffee is divine!

I'm pretty sure we have Blue Bell here in Orlando, FL as well. And yes, Outback Steakhouse serves it.

[LiberTodd]

Yet another silly attempt by PETA at bringing us down and raising up the animals, trying to make it look like people are equal to cows.

Let the PETArds eat up their human ice cream and enjoy the Mono, Influenza, and HIV they get from ingesting the body fluids of complete strangers. What a victory for common sense!

[Brule]

From what I understand there are practical issues even if the breast milk was made disease free and enough could be obtained. Human milk has very different qualities. I once read a discussion of making cheese from breast milk but it was considered too watery and sweet. Also the diet of a cow is pretty simple compared to an adult human female, whose diet may introduce many unwanted flavors into the milk. (various meats, spices, among many others)

[Maximus]

Blue Bell Ice Cream is where it's at. If you're ever in Texas, be sure to try it. Any flavor at all is the best you will ever eat and a certain spoon-bender. The homemade vanilla is splendid with apple or cherry pie just out of the oven. (I think Outback Steakhouses serve it too, countrywide, but I can't find it at any retail stores outside of TX, unfortunately.) Also, if you're a coffee drinker, a (bent) spoonful of homemade vanilla in your coffee is divine!

We have Blue Bell Ice Crean in Tennessee. Good stuff.

[K-Mac]

Dammit! I want some!

I did find an ice cream shop in Estes Park, Colorado, that was serving Blue Bell ice cream. Too bad it's a few hours from home.

[Tenure]

These two flavours are the bread and butter of Ben & Jerry's.

[Marc K.]

This is udderly ridiculous. This titillating topic deserves to be punned, I'll do my breast. But if I fail, please don't cry over spilt milk or any udder things my jokes lact.

So the Peets want us to suckle at their teats ayy, well we should pull on them and pull on them and milk them for all they are worth. It's gonna be tit for tat. These people are really the cream of the crop, every word they say whips me into a frenzy. When they speak Ice scream, what a rocky road they want to take us down. Their vision of the world churns my stomach and leaves a sour taste in my mouth.

We are Quickly reaching a titular moment in time when these boobs with their pint sized brains and gallons and gallons of chutzpah will insist on milking us of every last drop of benevolence and dignity to fill their jugs. To cower before these titmice would be such a gland mistake that my mammy would shudder.

Don't fall for their titanic sized booby trap. If the good of mam is their goal, I'll be a chunky monkey's uncle.

[Marc K.]

Well shake my milk!!!

Not one laugh?

Not one smile?

My jokes must really be cheesy, or they don't mean jack, I cheddar at the thought.

Brie Marc, Brie.

[Ordr]

I thought it was absolutely hilarious.

[softwareNerd]

Ha, ha... I missed it the first time round. Was worthy of the bump!