For 90 years, Whitey's Ice Cream, a third-generation, family-run ice cream processor, has been a staple in the Quad Cities (Rock Island and Moline in Illinois and Davenport and Bettendorf in Iowa) by offering premium ice cream, famous upside-down shakes and more "their way."

Like a car being made in an automotive assembly plant, the technology and equipment used to get — and track — real-time dairy data has improved tremendously over time.

Like a balloon ascending to the sky, most segments of the cultured dairy category — refrigerated yogurt and yogurt drinks, cottage cheese, cream cheese, sour cream, dairy dips, and whipped toppings — are going “up, up and away.”

First District Association accelerates cheese production with world’s longest, three-story cheese belt. The new cheese plant and barrel packaging room has the capacity to fill a 500-pound barrel of cheese in 43 seconds.  

Through major expansion, First District Association readies itself for the next century. It invested  $200 million to update and expand plant and product capacity so “the cooperative is set up to thrive in the next 100 years,” CEO Bob Huffman relays.

Upcycled brewery byproducts unlock new barley flours, sustainable proteins for ready-to-drink beverages. Managing Editor Barbara Harfmann tours St. Louis-based EverGrain by AB InBev to learn about EverPro, a powdered ingredient taking the market by storm. 

Sunny-tasting fruits and fibrous nuts exemplify health and flavor in dairy products, including.ice cream, cheese, milk and yogurt. Because of their healthy halo, nut products are projected to reach $8.9 billion by 2027, according to Research and Markets.

Gums, emulsifiers, stabilizers help extend shelf life, improve creamy texture of ice cream, yogurt.

Prebiotics work as a fertilizer to boost growth of “good” bacteria, probiotics. Choosing the right pre-, pro- or postbiotic strains can help with unintentional weight gain, fatigue, sickness, and digestive health, experts note.
 

Chef-inspired dishes and creamy innovation at the “House that Cheddar Built.” Managing Editor Barbara Harfmann and 13 members of the media got a birds-eye view of TCCA’s cheese processing operations, tasted their premium ice cream and much more.