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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 24, 1994)
niaryM Aggielife Thursday, February 24,1994 IMHBIMBI The Battalion Page 3 VTheBOT’ ie Hewlet em )ved lasliil the Corpd'i jnity Serai era! dome: 7cOMpa.# creatnerep Dairy Products Lab chums out more than milk and ice cream, general manager says By Claudia Zavaleta The Battalion more than 40 years, Texas A&M's Dairy /“■ Products Lab has been serving students ice r cream, milk and more importantly, an educa tion. Hector Astorga, general manager of the cream ery, said the Dairy Products Lab has been used as a teaching and research facility by the food, dairy and animal science departments. "The creamery not only creates products," Astor ga said, "but it is a place for learning also. Students can have hands-on experience in dairy technology and learn how to manage different types of dairy A&M's Rosenthal Meat Science and Technology Center on the west side of campus sells products from the dairy. products." Astorga said the creamery, which was started in the 50s, originally produced all dairy products for the University. But as enrollment increased, the de mand grew too large for the Dairy Products Lab to handle. "Everything we make is still for use on campus," he said. "But now, our main product is milk. All the milk used in the cafeterias is from the creamery." Food Services buys about 3,000 gallons of choco late, skim and whole milk per week from the cream ery, and other products are also sold at the Rosen thal Meat Science and Technology Center (RMSTC) on west campus. Four types of cheeses such as natural cheddar, processed jalapeno cheddar and cheddar spreads are sold at Rosenthal. Butter, quarg (a type of cot tage cheese) and ice cream are also popular cream ery products. Jeanne Walker, storekeeper for the RMSTC, said the store usually carries at least eight varieties of ice cream. "Sometimes the creamery makes seasonal fla vors," Walker said. "Last fall, they made kahlua toffee, and now they have almondine. Butter pecan is the all-time favorite." The secret of the ice cream's popularity. Walker said, is the quality of the products. During the sum mer months, for example, hundreds of cones and shakes are sold each day. "The creamery doesn't cut the standards to com pete with the outside markets," Walker said. "The prices and the quality are much better." Whitney Etchison, a senior speech communica tions major, said the ice cream has become some what of a tradition for her and her dad. "My dad loves to go there," Etchison said. Hector Astorga, general manager of the Dairy Products Lab, prepares the machine that is "Every time he comes to visit me he makes me take him on campus to buy some ice cream." The products, including the ice cream, are first generated as teaching aids, and then sold to the public. Astorga said although the creamery is a non profit organization, it usually breaks even; and any profit generated through sales are used for workers' wages, equipment and processing supplies. The research done at the creamery is funded by grants and scholarships from major contributors, such as Blue Bell, the National Dairy Board and the Mid-America Dairymen Inc. Currently, the creamery is involved in research ing accelerated cheese ripening which tries to create the aged flavor without a lot of time. Flavor en hancement for various products and taste-testing panels are other projects underway. These programs are handled by graduate stu dents, but half of the daily production staff is made of undergraduate students. Astorga, a senior agricultural engineering stu dent, has worked at the creamery for three years, two as a student worker and one as the manager. "The creamery staffs seven workers total," Astor- Photos by Kyle Bumett/THE Battalion responsible for folding, filling and sealing one- gallon milk cartons. ga said. "It is a small operation, but it is so auto mated now that the machines take care of most everything." Students use the creamery during four different food science courses. In these courses, students learn how to come up with formulas, additives and preservatives for dairy products. "They come here, not only to see what we do," Astorga said, "but also to actually learn how to manufacture it themselves." Aylin Karayel, a senior food science major, said working at the creamery gave her the chance to practice all she had learned about dairy production. "Last semester, I had a milk class and I helped out at just about everything," Karayel said. "Since it's a small creamery, you can get hands-on experi ence at every level." Students thinking of going into the dairy indus try, Karayel said, should consider working at the creamery because it provides good insight into dairy production. Walker said the learning aspect of the center is the only reason they have products to sell. "All products are generated through teaching," she said. "That's all we're here for." he fomuj ss. 'exas' pro Segal, an i >f the Cod \munity$| iremonyi olunteersi'l r history Local Jewish community prepares for colorful celebration of Purim By Paul Neale The Battalion 4/ I Combining the shouts and noisemak- | ers of New Year's with the masquerading of Halloween, the Jewish holiday Purim ■*: commemorates Queen Esther's deliver ance of the Jews from Haman's genocide scheme. At the center of the festivities is the reading of the book of Esther from the Bible. Whenever Haman's name is read aloud, the celebrants, some of which are [ifiressed up as Esther, drown out the vil lain's name with shouts and noisemakers. The raucous, colorful holiday is popu lar with Jewish children. "It's essentially a children's holiday," said Reuben Ehrlich, vice president of re ligious affairs for the Hillel Jewish Stu dent Association. "We celebrate Purim because it's fun to be a kid again. Fun and games are a big part of Purim, but at its core is the courage and purpose in defending the Jewish religion. "It's a celebration of religious freedom and perseverance," Ehrlich said. According to the book, the villain of the story, Haman, plotted a massacre of all the Jews in the Persian Empire instead of taking revenge on one man. This prideful prime minister plotted genocide when Mordecai failed to bow down to Haman because of his Jewish beliefs. To gain King Ahasuerus' backing, Haman told the king that the Jews break the king's laws and abide by their own. The king, unaware that Esther was a Jew and trusting his prime minister's judg ment, ordered Haman's scheme to be car ried out. Haman fixed the extinction date of the Jews by lot, or objects used in mak ing a choice by chance. However, through her bravery and her wisdom, Esther foiled Haman's plan and Haman himself was killed. Mordecai be came prime minister in Haman's place. Purim, or the Feast of Lots, celebrates Esther's bravery against hate. "It symbolizes the fight against preju dice today," said Rabbi Peter Tarlow of the Hillel Jewish Student Association. "Groups must learn to live' together." Tarlow said Haman represents the evil of every generation. Saddam Hussein, a present-day Haman, was defeated on Purim in 1991. Hillel President Melissa Weiner said Purim is an important time to celebrate because the Jewish people were delivered from genocide similar to what is going on in Bosnia. Jews consider Esther to be a legend like many other books in the Bible and do not necessarily consider it to be truth. Jews regard the first five books of the Bible, or the Pentateuch, to be true. Although Purim is today. The Hillel Jewish Student Association will celebrate this year's Purim at a lock-in Friday night. The association has invited students from all over Texas this year to join in the fes tivities. In keeping with tradition, the book of Esther will be read at the lock-in and cele brants will have a chance to dress up in improvised costumes created from news papers. Alcoholic beverages and Haman- taschen, triangular cakes filled with fruit, are standard refreshments at Purim fes tivities. The shape of the cakes represent Haman's three-sided hat. This year, the HJSA will include a southwestern twist to the festivities: a pihata — with a triangu lar hat, of course. linSenat ification of oof ^ An Evening OF- Musical Brilliance editor ;ditor ditor oto editor dions# lames >r, Stews * 1 *' Ramirez e, Meli ssa 1 ezad a P rinSSf ^ am fiM UnW* A he D,vl 3 2 ed McD*^ l (Jve r,is «!U londayH ... To<W I he city of Bonn has a definite ~ "J; place in musical history, having reared ^ such geniuses as Beethoven and Schumann. But the city has also adopted the famed Orchester der Beethovenhalle Bonn. Under the direction of Dennis Russell Davies, the 122-member German orchestra will open its United States tour at Texas A&M University with traditional works by Beethoven, Wagner and more. In addition, world-renowned pianist Vladimir Feltsman will demonstrate why he has been recognized as one of the greatest musical talents of the post-war era. March 7,1994 • 8:00 p.m. • Rudder Auditorium Tickets are on sale at the MSC Box Office - TAMU, /fTiDA C or c ^ ar & e pl 10ne at 845-1234 Come of age with MSC OPAS... and see the world in a new light L Persons with disabilities please call 845-1515 to inform us of your special needs. We request notification three O- (3) working days prior to the event to enable us to assist you to the best of our ability. 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