Photo by Edgar Cardiel
On Tuesday, Nov. 5, a number of Harding students participated in an election. Yarnell’s Ice Cream completed two flavor profiles for their upcoming Harding University flavor, Bison Tracks. Yarnell’s Ice Cream decided on Bison Tracks which they say will consist of “rich chocolate ice cream, delightful brownie bits, and luscious caramel ribbons” after reviewing hundreds of responses from a survey previously on campus.
Students were tasked with ranking the two samples on a scale of one to nine in five different categories: flavor, texture, smell, appearance and overall appeal. Mitch Evans, the vice president of sales at Yarnell’s Ice Cream who was celebrating his 40th year with the company, said that the biggest difference was “between the batter and the caramel.” He also explained that “one of the biggest problems you can have with ice cream is that it can get icy and crystallize.”
While most students were pleased with both profiles, the color concerned some students. Evans emphasized how important it was to Yarnell’s Ice Cream that the colors reflect the school, but many students felt it would help if the ice cream were darker to reflect the black of Harding, letting it be contrasted by the caramel’s gold. Evans said this would be a challenge for their engineers as “we don’t like to use food coloring, to change the color we change the makeup of the batter,” but remained optimistic, saying “they love challenges.”
It wouldn’t be an election without executive vice president, Dr. Jean-Noel Thompson casting his vote.
When asked about how the University got involved with Yarnell’s Ice Cream, Thompson explained that “the process came through our food provider, Aramark, who wanted to include local food providers and work with the community.”
Evans underscored the importance of Yarnell’s Ice Cream’s quality as a premium ice cream company.
“A lot of companies don’t sell ice cream anymore, they sell ‘frozen dessert’ because they don’t hit the 10% butterfat mark,” Evans said. “We never dropped our quality for the changing market.”
The survey concluded with Evans’ most important question to the students: “Does it taste like something you want more of?” The answer? A resounding yes. While the flavor was met with a positive reaction, Evans says they will be tweaking the color in order to better match the university. As Yarnell’s Ice Cream continues to work on their suggestions from the students, Jason Warrington, Aramark’s marketing manager, says that on their end “we’re still in a debate on how to spell Tracks.”
Yarnell’s Ice Cream says “Bison Tracks will go into production immediately and will be available in the University dining hall starting next semester.”
