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

install the fi rst prototype NT system in a large idle dairy
products plant at Holguín (pronounced hol-GEEN) in eastern
Cuba. This plant was chosen because the workers are a very
enthusiastic group and also because it has a good workshop
and qualifi ed, hard-working mechanics. Thus, it could make
a contribution to the successful and speedy installation of
the fi rst plant. At this point, the whole interdisciplinary team
that had developed the technology and equipment moved
to Holguin, where they worked night and day, sometimes
20 hours nonstop, with the men and women of Holguín,
catching a little sleep when they could on the fl oor of the
plant. It took, on average, 14 days to install each plant and
get it running. This was possible thanks to the spirit and
selfl ess dedication of these local people, who were willing to
work so hard and with such great desire to help relieve the
severe food shortages. When the soymilk plant was up and
running, they tested it and the soy yogurt, made changes,
and tested again. Finally in May 1994 the fi rst soy yogurt
for the people Cuba came off the line. Everyone tasted it and
rejoiced. Viva la revolucion! Continued. Address: 1. Ing.,
Director; 2. Vicedirector. Both: Food Research Inst. (Instituto
de Investigaciones para la Industria Alimenticia), Carretera
Guatao Km 3½, La Lis 19200, Havana City, Cuba. Phone:
21-6986 or 21-6742.
1081. Garcia Uriarte, Alvaro; Ortega, Alberto. 1996. Recent
history of soyfoods in Cuba. Part IV (Interview). SoyaScan
Notes. Jan. 9. Conducted by William Shurtleff of Soyfoods
Center.
• Summary: Again and again during 1994 the Food Industry
Research Institute (FIRI) team went to dairy processing
plants in Cuba. It was a marathon effort. By the end of
1994 a remarkable 14 new soy dairies making soy yogurt
had been installed in the wings of existing dairy plants
throughout Cuba. This mammoth effort was possible through
the cooperation of the Ministry of Food Industry (MINAL)
and local enterprises and governments. The NT equipment
was built mostly by the Enterprise in Charge of Equipment
Building and Installation. Most of the plants had a capacity
of either 2,000 or 4,000 liters/hour; the smallest was 1,200
liters/hour. During 1994 the 14 plants churned out a total of
11 million liters of soy yogurt–4 million liters from the one
plant in Havana using the two large Alfa-Laval centrifuges,
and 7 million liters from the 13 other plants using the new
technology. By late 1994 about 400,000 kids ages 7-13 living
in the provincial capitals nationwide were receiving 1 liter of
soy yogurt a week. Alvaro and his coworkers at FIRI were so
convinced of the superiority of their technology that in Nov.
1994 they eliminated the Alfa-Laval plant, replacing it the
next month with two new NT production lines.
During 1995 eight more plants were installed, bringing
the total to 22. These plants produced 33 million liters of soy
yogurt (containing 3.0 to 3.2% protein), which reached about
500,000 kids. Though there are presently about 1,200,000
HISTORY OF SOY YOGURT & CULTURED SOYMILK 412
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kids in Cuba, most of those not living in the capitals have
access to milk from the nearby cows. Alvaro showed us
a chart listing the location of each plant, the date it began
operation, and its capacity. As of mid-January 1996 four new
plants are under construction, and 5 more are on the drawing
boards, ready to go. One of the plants under construction in
Havana will make only spreadable soy cream cheese (queso
crema), a new product developed at FIRI.
Three basic types of yogurt were made in Cuba’s many
soy dairies: 50% of the total was set soy yogurt sold in bulk
containers, which reduced packaging costs. Local people
would bring their own containers in which to take home their
portion of the yogurt. Another 25% was set soy yogurt in one
liter glass jars–which were, of course, recycled after use. The
last 25% was stirred soy yogurt, sold in one liter plastic bags
as a drink having the consistency of a milk shake.
The plan for 1996 is to produce 76 million liters of soy
yogurt–more than double the total for 1995!
In September 1994, soymilk started to be used (together
with dairy milk) in Cuban ice cream, made at the dairy plant
at Pinar del Rio. In 1995 some 12 million liters of soymilk
were used in Cuba’s ice cream, accounting for 50% of the
total milk used–the other half being cow’s milk. However
no soymilk is used in the most famous Cuban brand of
ice cream, Copelia. This is made with only fresh milk and
cream, using a traditional dairy formula and technology.
In January 1995 a cultured/fermented spreadable soy
cream cheese was fi rst made commercially in Cuba at the
dairy plant in the province of Villa Clara. Resembling Cuba’s
traditional queso crema but containing no animal products, it
is used as a spread on bread or crackers, in salad dressings,
served as a dessert topped with marmalade or jam, or mixed
with canned meat to make a pâté.
Soybeans were fi rst cultivated in Cuba in 1904, and
the climate and soil have always been good for growing
them. Yet although Cuban scientists have done extensive
research on soybean production over the last few decades
and developed new soybean varieties that yield well under
Cuban conditions, almost no soybeans are grown in Cuba
today, in part because of the historical emphasis on sugar.
Therefore Cuba has to import all of the 10,000 tonnes per
year of soybeans used to make soymilk and soy yogurt,
using precious foreign exchange. In the past, Cuba has also
imported roughly 300,000 tonnes of soybeans (as whole
beans or soybean meal) for animal feed. The food-grade
soybeans come mostly from Canada and Brazil. Canada’s
white-hilum soybeans are considered the best for soy yogurt.
For 45 days during 1995 no soybeans were imported into
Cuba due to the lack of hard currency (U.S. dollars). The
Soy Cubano! program of Global Exchange in San Francisco
is working to help Cuba become more self-suffi cient in
soybeans. For Cuba to become self-suffi cient at 1989 levels
of consumption for the 11 million inhabitants, the country
would have to grow about 500,000 tonnes of soybeans.