Questions & Answers
from "On Ice Cream" featured in Dairy Foods magazine
and sourced from "On Ice Cream" technical short courses.

Calcium nutrient content claims:

Question: What needs to be taken into account to make a claim of a "good source of calcium"?

Answer: In order to make a "good source of calcium" claim, the finished product must contain 10-19% of the Daily Value (DV) for calcium, or 100-190 mg calcium per serving. Standard ice cream (10% skim milk solids, 10% milk fat; 4.5 lbs. per gal finished) contains about 8% DV for calcium. Adding sweet whey at the allowed 25% level actually reduces calcium to about 6% DV. Reducing overrun can achieve a 10% DV or higher. Thus, achieving a "good source of calcium" claim should be relatively easy by managing MSNF and finished weights, or fortifying with any one of a number of calcium sources such as calcium phosphate, calcium lactate, calcium gluconate, calcium carbonate, calcium chloride, or "milk minerals". The are some considerations to note. The chemistry and cost of the calcium source, flavor and texture impact, overrun, freezing point effects, and any necessary labeling disclosure of "negative" nutrients must all be balanced. Too much MSNF can result in "sandy" ice cream. "Milk minerals" from whey, which typically are more consumer friendly, yet more costly, than other calcium sources, needs be considered part of total "whey solids". Additionally, calcium sources vary in solubility and can negatively impact the desired smooth, creamy nature of any given product. This can result in gritty, grainy texture and/or increase the likelihood of icy, coarse, and "sandy" defects. Freezing point depression and resultant impacts on mix performance must be also taken into account. Overrun considerations are critical. High overrun, low MSNF products may not qualify and may require fortification. Lower overrun products with more typical MSNF might qualify without modification. Finally, any nutrient content claim might need to be accompanied by a nutrient disclosure statement of other nutrients (i.e., fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium) that FDA considers an increase risk of disease or health related condition. The threshold amounts of these nutrients to trigger such labeling are 13g fat, 4g saturated fat, 60mg cholesterol, and/or 480mg sodium per serving. Most ice creams, when they meet the requirements for a calcium claim (10-19% DV), meet at least one, or more, of these thresholds. A calcium claim, however, can be made with proper disclosure. It is also possible to produce a product without need for a nutrient disclosure statement. Such a product would, most likely, be some variant of low or no fat ice cream, frozen yogurt, sherbet, sorbet, or water ice.