The Dairy Queen or DQ is a soft serve ice cream and fast food restaurant in the United States owned by International Dairy Queen, Inc. The company also owns Orange Julius and formerly owned Karmelkorn and Golden Skillet Fried Chicken. Its headquarters are in Bloomington, Minnesota. But did you know that their soft serve is not considered ice cream?
The FDA does not consider Dairy Queen’s ice cream to be ice cream. Because the milk fat percentage in Dairy Queen soft serve is lower than that of traditional ice cream, it is classified as ice milk.
The History of Dairy Queen
J.F. McCullough and his son, Alex, created the delectable dairy delicacy millions knew as Dairy Queen soft serve in 1938 near Moline, Illinois. The McCulloughs’ invention paved the way for today’s network of over 5,700 Dairy Queen and Dairy Queen or Brazier locations in the United States, Canada, and many other countries in Europe, Central America, the Far East, and the Middle East.
The McCulloughs agreed to test their new product in an ice cream store owned by Sherb Noble in Kankakee, Illinois. Noble conducted an All You Can Eat for 10 Cents promotion on an August afternoon. More than 1,600 people waited in line to sample the novel treat, and the McCulloughs realized they had a lucrative business prospect.
All they needed was an effective technique to distribute their soft serve product. They quickly discovered a freezer designed by Harry Oltz of Hammond, Indiana, that could provide a continuous product flow. On numerous occasions, J.F. McCullough referred to the cow as the queen of the dairy business. As a result, the Dairy Queen brand was born. Noble opened the first Dairy Queen business in Joliet, Illinois, in 1940.
There are over 5,700 Dairy Queen locations worldwide, and Dairy Queen is much more than just a single product. Dairy Queen sells a wide range of items, including our DQ soft serve and the Brazier line of hot dishes. Dairy Queen is the world’s leading seller of soft frozen dessert goods. (Source: DQ Woodbridge)
What is Considered Real Ice Cream?
A product must have a minimum milk fat percentage of 10% to be classified as ice cream. Meanwhile, DQ’s soft serve contains only 5% milk fat.
Our soft-serve does not technically qualify as ice cream. The company further adds that it’s famed soft serve used to be classified as ice milk by the FDA. However, the FDA eliminated that category of products to allow companies to promote frozen dairy products with decreased milk fat content using words such as low-fat and reduced fat.
Dairy Queen
(Source: Eat This)
Is it True that DQ Treats are Healthy?
According to studies, the DQ treats are not healthy. Even though they contain less butterfat, Dairy Queen products are not fat-free or sugar-free. Dairy Queen currently does not offer sugar- or fat-free alternatives, while there are a few no-sugar-added ones. Here’s a peek at the nutrition facts for DQ snacks. (Source: Eat This)
Is the DQ Recipe Still the Same?
While FDA standards have evolved, Dairy Queen products have remained consistent, which Dairy Queen is also proud of.
Before the first DQ opened, John Fremont McCullough invented the soft-serve formula used in Dairy Queen desserts. Even though it isn’t an ice cream recipe, the same soft-serve procedure has been around for decades. (Source: Eat This)
Image from Delish