Imagine a hot summer day. How does a nice cold bowl of ice cream sound? Now you can ditch the agony of having melted ice cream with a newly made non-melting ice cream.  Ah, rich people problems.  

So far, two different schools and one major retailer have tried to make this dream a reality: the University of Edinburgh, the University of Dundee, and Walmart.

The two universities are in the process of making an ice cream using a natural protein called BsIA to delay the melting process.

The protein BsIA stands for Bacterial Surface Layer A. Scientists at the University of Edinburgh discovered that using a natural protein prevents melting.

“By using this protein we’re replacing some of the fat molecules that are currently used to stabilize these oil and water mixtures so it can reduce the fat content, but it shouldn’t taste any different,” said Prof. Cait MacPhee, from the University of Edinburgh’s school told to BBC news.  

The ice cream is able to accomplish this task by binding the air, fat, and water which creates a smooth consistency that stays frozen longer. It works by attracting fat droplets and air bubbles. The reason behind doing this is that it makes them more stable for a mixture.

Delaying melting is not all that this protein can do. The protein can also keep ice crystals from forming on the ice cream when it is in the freezer. It is able to preserve the smooth texture of ice cream. It can also allow the product to be manufactured with lower levels of saturated fat and fewer calories than it is currently made.

“It has been fun working on the applied use of a protein that was initially identified due to its practical purpose in bacteria,” said Dr. Nicola Stanley-Wall, a Dundee University molecular microbiologist.

The protein was created with support from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

Scientists believe that their newly made ice cream will be available within three to five years at a local grocery store.  

These universities aren’t the only ones trying to make non-melting ice cream. Walmart did something similar with their “Great Value” vanilla flavored ice cream bars.

Although, Walmart did not use a protein to create their ice cream, they used an FDA-approved gum that slows melting.

“They do serve a purpose in that they give even high-quality ice cream that mouth feel, that creamy texture, and the minimization of ice crystals,” said foods scientist and culinary professor Grace Yek to MS news now.

According to an experiment done by Consumer Reports, the ice cream bar didn’t melt after an hour in 100 degree heat.

“I noticed that my son had left his ice cream sandwich outside, and I was wondering, ‘Why is there still ice cream there?'” said Christie Watson to the MS news now.

This special ice cream bar was discovered after a mother was worried that something was wrong after the ice cream didn’t melt after a morning in 80 degree heat.

Consumer Reports did an experiment with four other major ice cream bar brands: Klondike, Nestle, Walgreens “Nice” Brand, Blue Bunny, and Walmart’s “Great Value” ice cream sandwiches.

According to Consumer Reports, the Nestle ice cream bar melted within 10 minutes, the Klondike bar took 15 minutes to slightly melt at the corners, and in 30 minutes the Walgreens Nice bar, the blue bunny bar, and Walmart bar were soft but keeping their form. Even after one hour, the Walmart ice cream bar seemed to hold its shape.

After the test, the five ice cream bars were all tasted by Consumer Reports. They said that they could tell that there was some sort of gum in the Walmart “Great Value” ice cream bar.   

“Without question there are gums in this product. You can absolutely feel it in your mouth,” said one of the workers from the sensory panel about the Walmart “Great Value” brand to Consumer Reports.

“Almost like a marshmallow,” said another one of the workers about the Walmart bar to Consumer Reports.

When Consumer reports asked Walmart about the ice cream they responded by saying, “Ice Cream with more cream will generally melt at a slower rate.”
According to Consumer Reports you should not be worried about eating the gums used in this product because a lot of the food we eat regularly contain some of these same gums.