history of soy yogurt, soy acidophilus milk and other ... - SoyInfo Center

esearcher, Jackson L. Cartter, who had just graduated with a
master’s degree from Iowa State College. From 1928 to 1933
Cartter did soybean research on a farm in Holgate, Ohio that
was managed by the Ohio Experiment Station. From 1933
to 1936 Cartter worked directly under Morse at the USDA
Experiment Station, Arlington Farm, Virginia; he tested,
grew out, and classifi ed many of the soybeans from Morse’s
trip to East Asia. In 1936 Cartter helped to organize the U.S.
Regional Soybean Laboratory at the University of Illinois.
He became the fi rst director of its agronomic division and
was placed in charge of the soybean breeding program for
the 12 midwestern states; he studied the soybean’s oil and
protein composition, and served as director of the laboratory
until his retirement in 1965.
“Unfortunately the long-term results of Morse’s
collection efforts in East Asia are not what they might have
been. It was estimated in 1980 that only 25,000 acres of
the 70.1-million-acre U.S. soybean crop were planted in
vegetable-type soybeans, a mere 0.04 per- cent of the total.
They have never become popular here for various reasons;
they give 20 to 30 percent lower per-acre yields than fi eldtype
soybeans, tend to shatter easily at maturity and are thus
hard to harvest, and consequently sell for 12 to 18 percent
more than other soybeans. If they were less expensive, large
amounts would probably be used in East Asia to make tofu,
soymilk, tempeh, and miso by producers who already buy
their beans from America.” Continued. Address: Soyfoods
Center, P.O. Box 234, Lafayette, California.
444. Dukess, Karen. 1981. Tofu, tofu everywhere. New York
Times. Aug. 2. Section 3. p. 17, col. 1.
• Summary: Yogurt didn’t catch on in America until Dannon
added fruit to the plain product in 1968 and won the hearts
of a newly diet-conscious nation. Yogurt production climbed
from 44 million pounds in 1960 to 589 million pounds in
1980. Production of tofu and tofu products in 1980 was
about 52 million pounds. But Tom Timmins, owner of New
England Soy Dairy, predicts that tofu could be the yogurt of
the 1980s.
The big American food companies aren’t biting yet.
“’Most companies are aware of the incredible blood, sweat,
and tears it will take to create another yoghurt,’ said Timothy
Metzger, director of new products/planning at Dannon.”
The Hinode Tofu Co. started in Hawaii in 1939, and
opened in Los Angeles in 1947. Today it is the largest in the
USA, producing 20,000 lb of tofu a day. It reaped $110,500
profi t on $3.5 million sales last year.
Mintz’s Buffet is a “kosher-soy delicatessen in
Manhattan. David Mintz, the buffet’s owner, became
intrigued when asked to create a kosher beef stroganoff.
Answer: substitute tofu for the sour cream, which under
Jewish law cannot be mixed with meat. Now, after four
years in the kitchen, Mr. Mintz has created an all natural,
no cholesterol tofu ice cream that looks and tastes like the
HISTORY OF SOY YOGURT & CULTURED SOYMILK 183
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real thing. Producing 200 gallons a week, Mr. Mintz says he
cannot satisfy the demand, which includes a request from
Mt. Sinai hospital for 500 portions daily. There are also tofu
bran muffi ns, vegetable pies, and salads–plus a $2,000 tofu
wedding, from tofu roast duck to tofu wedding cake.
“But the real future of tofu could lie in Washington
[DC]. If President Reagan has his way, the Child Nutritional
Program (mainly the National School Lunch Program, which
serves approximately 4,350 million meals a year) will have
to cut $1,500 million from its annual budget. Now tofu
costs roughly $1.10 a pound, while hamburger is upward of
$1.50 and fi sh over $3. (Chicken runs more like 71 cents,
but that includes bone.) With that sort of math in mind, an
Agriculture Department task force recommended last month
that tofu be accredited to the program.”
Note 1. This is the earliest document seen (Feb. 1999)
which conceives of tofu as “the yogurt of the 1980s.” This
theme would repeated many times during the 1980s.
Note 2. This is the earliest document seen (Oct. 2001)
that contains industry or market statistics on soy ice cream
for individual companies.
445. Oakland Tribune. 1981. Tofu products are expected to
leap in ‘80s. Sept. 23.
• Summary: David Mintz is having great success with
tofu at his New York delicatessen and catering service. He
has developed and is selling dozens of western-style tofu
products from broccoli with tofu mustard sauce to “tofu
frozen desserts.”
FIND-SVP, a New York-based market research and
publishing company, suggests that Mintz is part of a national
trend. John Perry, director of research for FIND-SVP, think
the potential market for tofu “is at least as great as the
current market for yogurt.” But it will probably take 5-10
years to reach that level. The FIND-SVP survey estimates
current tofu sales at about $50 million/year and predicts they
will increase 300% in the next 5 years. Cassandra Marrone
thinks William Shurtleff, author of The Book of Tofu, is
responsible for a great deal of the interest in making and
selling tofu in America.
Note: This is the earliest document seen (Feb. 1999)
which compares the potential market for tofu with the current
market for yogurt. Address: California.
446. Shurtleff, William; Aoyagi, Akiko. 1981. Dr. John
Harvey Kellogg and Battle Creek Foods: History of work
with soyfoods. Soyfoods Center, P.O. Box 234, Lafayette,
CA 94549. 20 p. Sept. 29. Unpublished typescript. Available
online at www.soyinfocenter.com.
• Summary: A comprehensive history of the subject.
Contents: Introduction. Early life and teachings: Birth,
work with Ellen White, medical school, thesis, in 1876 took
charge of institute he renamed Battle Creek Sanitarium
(new meaning for this term), its research kitchen developed