The Dairy Blog

Question of the day...

Mayfield Moms — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 08:10:57 -0400

So, is it Peanut Butter Butter Riffic?

Is it Peanut Butter Terrific?

Is it Peanut Butter Lific?

Is it Peanut Butter Pecan?

What is it???

Peanut Butter--------(drum roll please……………) Riffic!

Ta da!

This is the funnest flavor, because it is a tongue twister, and everyone does a double take on the name! Fun stuff!!!

b (Brittney, Mayfield Mom, Birmingham)

My Friday the 13th story...

Mayfield Moms — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 08:32:47 -0400

Hello everyone! I wanted to tell everyone about my day being it is Friday the 13th. Who ever came up with Friday the 13th being one of those days that things can go wrong knew what they where talking about...

My day was going very well I had an On the Air Interview with Mr. Tony Perry with 105.7 we where planning to do a Taste Test on the Air and tell about the 4 New Flavors of Ice Cream. I went to the plant to pick up my products and OH NO!!! being the wonderful products that they are they are hard to keep in the plant, there were no new flavors to be found. Especially on a Friday...I thought, what am I going to do? Time is running out and I need to be at the station soon. I thought, I will call Tony and tell him I would be late. So, I tried to find the number and it was not to be found. I called information and for some reason they could not find it either! Well, now what am I going to do, I thought. Then, I thought that I would just drive over and tell Tony the situation since the station is not far at all and let him know I would be back with the Ice Cream. Just as I started out the door, one of the drivers called to say he was close to the plant and that he could me some of the product on his truck.

Now, finally, with Ice Cream in hand I was off to the station! We had a wonderful time sampling the 4 New Flavors and telling people just how great they are. I would like to Thank Tony Perry of 105.7 for having me come in and share Mayfield Ice Cream with him and his crew. I had a wonderful time, it was so much fun!

The last time I went in to interview with Tony we had told the public about the New Flavors and where I would be doing my next event along with my date and time of the event... and OH MY GOODNESS!!! there were sooo many people who came in and told me they had heard me talking with Tony on 105.7 about the new flavors they wanted to try it too. I would love to thank all those people who stood in line patiently waiting to try the new flavors. They all left with SMILES on their faces...

I love my job as a Mayfield Mom!! It is sooo much fun! I hope to see you soon!

Marsha

Mayfield Mom Squad

My Valentine

Mayfield Moms — Mon, 26 Feb 2007 11:21:13 -0500

Is there anything better than a "job" where you love what you do, and your family obviously loves what you do!?! Mayfield Mom Brittney here. I wanted to share with you my valentine from my son. His project in the computer lab on Valentine's Day was to write his mommy and daddy a letter and here you go - I thought it was too cute!

My day at school

Mayfield Moms — Mon, 19 Feb 2007 21:16:16 -0500

Hi there, Pamela here again, I just had to share this.

Last Monday the 3rd grade aide was sick so I was her sub for the day. Here I am standing at the class room door welcoming the children as they arrive. I notice they have food, so, now I am thinking YEAH PARTY!!!! I start asking if it is someone's birthday? It was even better than that. We were going to have a Feast for Georgia Day. The Feast was to be lunch (great because I did not bring one). The parents came, decorated and brought even more food (two long..... tables full). Of course I felt like I should earn my lunch so I pitched in to help. Now the purpose was to bring a food from Georgia like peaches (or recipes made with peaches),coke, pecans etc..... Guess what!!! There as a container of Mayfield Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream and of course I was so happy and thought how about that. I asked who brought the Mayfield Ice Cream and then one of the moms said, "I did as what would Georgia day be without Mayfield Ice Cream?" I was too tickled. I thanked her and said yes we have been in Georgia a long time. I did tell her Mayfield started in Tennessee but Georgia is one of our biggest and best markets and (in my opinion) was Mayfield's second home. Well, I ended up serving the Ice Cream as they had a horrible scoop and the children were having a hard time serving themselves.

I came home and told my husband. "You will never guess what I did at school today".

Have a great day!

What a race!

Visitor Center — Mon, 12 Feb 2007 09:20:11 -0500

What a race! The Helen Ross McNabb Center cardboard sled race, that has been held for six years now at Ober Gatlinburg, was held Feb. 2, 2007. It is a sled race down the snow packed slope at Ober Gatlinburg. Any business or individual can enter to participate as long as you follow the guidelines for building the sled. You have to build the sled out of cardboard and tape. You can have 2 to 4 people who ride the sled down the slope.

Mayfield has participated for the last three years. Each year Randy Ballew designs and builds the sled with the help of fellow rider Russell Mahery. The creativity and talent that they put into building the sleds is unbelievable. This year our sled was a giant Snow Cream Pop Stix that bursts out of the carton. With only one set of handles built into the front of the sled, Russell was holding on for dear life, with the rest of the team (Heather Buchanan, Ashley Reed, and Randy) behind him. Just as we were on our sled and waiting for the time to go, the course staff members could not hold our sled on the starting line, causing us to be disqualified due to a false start. Even though we didn't win, our sled definitely stood out among the others. As we handed out snow pops to our competitors, they couldn't help but to cheer for us. After all, we are Mayfield....."The World's Best Ice Cream".

Ashley Reed and Heather Buchanan

This year's sled

Sled from 2 years ago

Mayfield Day at the Ice Chalet

Scottie Mayfield — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 17:00:32 -0500

It has been a long time since I have been ice skating and Saturday I decided I did not need to put on a pair of skates to enjoy the Ice Chalet in Knoxville. The folks at the Ice Chalet were kind enough to let us sample their skaters with our four new flavors of ice cream for 2007. I think it is supposed to be a surprise and I am not supposed to mention the flavors in this blog, but since that was the reason for being at the Ice Chalet and a bunch of folks sampled them, I think I should tell you about them.

First, I need to mention the Ice Chalet experience. It was great! It was obvious people were having a great time. I saw some folks who appeared to be regulars and some who were first-timers. One family I knew was attending a birthday party. As they arrived, the Mom and Dad said, “This should be interesting.” I think the ages of their children were 4, 7 and 10. As they were leaving, they said, with a big smile, “That was interesting.” The place was packed. We served ice cream inside the skating area near the spectator stands. There was a big fireplace in the lobby area, which made it really warm. The rink area was appropriately cold. The manager said, “The colder the weather - the bigger the crowd.” Personally, I think we should all mark our calendars to go visit in the summer when it is too hot to be outside.

Now for the flavors: Chocolate Cream Pie, Olde Savannah Caramel, Coconut Cake and Peanut Butterific. OK, I’ll do the formal descriptions and then tell you our preferences:

Chocolate Cream Pie – Chocolate ice cream with bon bon marshmallow, a graham cracker swirl and chocolate chips. (Dark chocolate chips)

Olde Savannah Caramel – Caramel ice cream with a caramel ribbon and English Toffee pieces. (My personal favorite)

Coconut Cake – Coconut ice cream with a white icing and cake pieces. (Similar to Birthday Cake ice cream - only Coconut. Even people who professed to not like coconut liked it)

Peanut Butterific – Peanut butter ice cream with a chocolate peanut butter swirl and chocolate-covered peanuts.

Here are the results of those of us who listened to comments and did some sampling of our own. The Chocolate Cream Pie ran out first so we think it won, but only because people tried it by itself and then they started mixing it. I’m not sure whether the combination of Chocolate Cream Pie and Coconut Cake was preferred over the combo with Peanut Butterific. I thought it went well with the Olde Savannah Caramel, which came in a close second as a stand alone flavor. I think Coconut Cake and Peanut Butterific tied for third. Generally speaking, it looks like a tasty ice cream season coming up.

One thing we need to talk about and get some input on is: How do you say “Caramel?” Is it car-a-mel or care-a-mel? I always say care-a-mel, but I sure did hear a bunch of people say car-a-mel. Regardless of how you say it, it sure does taste good. The pieces of English Toffee are really good.

These flavors should be in the stores in March. We will probably have some folks stock them early, so go check-out the stores.

Scottie

Here's some pictures from the event...

From left, back row: Arianna McElyea, Falcon LaBorde, Me, Lucy Han, Marsean Oyler, Ashley Boling, and Ella Hulsey.

From left, front row: Tori Dziezyk, Jeshua Jacklet, Kelley Dziezyk, Rebecca Varnon, Holly Pattinson, and Kaleigh Lain.

What would you do?

Jan Montgomery — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 09:08:11 -0500

Hi, I'm Tiffany, and I work in Consumer Affairs with Jan. One of the best parts about my job is hearing funny stories from Mayfield fans. You never know when you're going to hear one that brightens your day and maybe even add a little laughter. I recently received an e-mail from a customer who was looking for Hog Heaven. Unfortunately, it is discontinued and I had to break the bad news to her. Fortunately though, she took the upset in stride and her response back to me was a story that I want to share with you all...

I must run with Ice Cream aficionados! My son, when he was about 15, told me to speed up to catch up with a Mayfield truck. He climbed up out of the window and yelled "Pull over. I've got a spoon and I'm not afraid to use it!" while he pointed his spoon at them! Then one day, my friend and I pulled into a gas station where we saw a Mayfield truck, and (although she is tiny) she said "Pull up by him, I am pretty sure we can take him!" I wondered how many people think the same thing when they see a Mayfield truck.

We wonder too! Do you get an overwhelming urge to do something silly when you spot one of our bright yellow trucks? Tell us your story. We would love to hear it!

Tiffany

Mayfield Day at the Ice Chalet

Jan Montgomery — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 08:32:03 -0500

Occasionally, consumers contact us to see if we have any events happening in their area where they can sample ice cream flavors. One such event is coming up in Knoxville, Tennessee and I wanted to let you know about it. February 3rd from 2pm until 5pm is Mayfield Day at the Ice Chalet. During this time, we will be giving visitors a sneak peek, and more importantly a FREE taste, of our new 2007 Feature Flavors before they are available in stores.

A discounted admission price of $2 will get you into the Chalet and skate rentals will be $3. So, this would be a fun and affordable afternoon for your whole family to skate and sample some terrific new ice cream flavors!

Also, be sure to tune in to WVLT, Channel 8 and Chef Walter for a chance to win free tickets to the event as well as a Mayfield prize pack.

Jan

Coffee House Fudge

Product Team — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 16:45:08 -0500

If you like coffee flavored ice cream, you should try our new one. It’s called Coffee House Fudge and it’s only available in our Select 2-piece package. This product is actually a reformulation of our old Jamocha Fudge, except with a much better flavor. It took some tweaking, but with the help from our friends at Virginia Dare we finally came up with the combination of coffee flavors that we were looking for. It’s simply a smooth coffee flavored ice cream with a ribbon of chocolate fudge running through it.

Scott

The Snow Cream Story

Executive Team — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 16:30:06 -0500

Here’s a little more information about the history of Mayfield Snow Cream…

Three years ago I was approached by company president Scottie Mayfield about an idea for a wintertime feature flavor. It seems he had come across a lady from Spruce Pine, North Carolina who had a formula for a product she called “Snow Cream,” and she trademarked the name to deter infringement on her idea.

Now, when I was growing up in East Tennessee we received about two snowfalls a year and, besides schools shutting down, one of the highlights of such an occasion was making homemade snow cream. The recipe was quiet simple – take a bowl of freshly fallen snow, add a half cup of whole milk, half a teaspoon of vanilla extract and sugar to taste. What a treat!

As much as I loved this concoction as a kid, I had reservations about its potential success as an ice cream flavor. After all, I didn’t know if other folks had similar experiences (like Rob) or if people would even know what snow cream was all about.

Still skeptical, we designed a unique carton fitting of the name and made the first run of this product in October 2003. Believing the initial production would last us through December, we promptly ran out in five days! The product was an instant hit and became the buzz of Mayfield lovers throughout the South.

Because I had so underestimated the volume of this product many grocers’ shelves were without until we were finally able to get enough cartons to supply our entire region. Additionally, the enthusiasm surrounding the product spawned offshoots such as Snow Cream Stix and Snow Cream Lowfat Vanilla Milk.

Today, Snow Cream® continues to thrive, and a product that had an expected life of four months has stretched that to three years…and counting.

Alan

Keep your fingers crossed for snow!

Rob Mayfield — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 17:02:41 -0500

Scottie and I were next door neighbors on the farm, maybe a quarter of a mile from each other. I’m eleven months older, so I was one grade ahead. Some of the best times happened during the winter when it snowed. My driveway was longer and steeper, which made a great sled run. Scottie and I, along with other siblings and friends, would compress the snow with our feet. Near the bottom of the driveway we would build a snow jump a foot high. During a fast downhill sled run it seemed we would jump several feet through the air. Many times the jump would cause us to lose control and crash into the huge oak tree just to the left of the driveway.

After a morning of sledding, we would walk back to Scottie’s house for lunch. His mother, my Aunt Muriel, would fix soup and sandwiches, and for dessert she made snow cream! Fresh snow, powdered sugar, Mayfield milk and vanilla extract. What a great treat. Nearly fifty years later, Scottie remembered this special treat, and our product development folks worked diligently to create the same fun sweet treat that we had after playing in the snow on the farm!

Do you have a Snow Cream story?

Rob

Question #2

Jan Montgomery — Wed, 22 Nov 2006 11:19:48 -0500

Question # 2 – Is Mayfield milk and ice cream available in my state?

We distribute our ice cream and other frozen dairy products in Eastern and Middle Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, South Carolina, portions of North Carolina, a small area of Mississippi where it borders Alabama, as well as parts of Kentucky and Virginia that border Tennessee.

Our milk is available in Eastern Tennessee, upper Georgia and the Metro Atlanta area, as well

as parts of Alabama, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky and Virginia where they border Tennessee.

Feel free to call our office at 1-800-MAYFIELD or contact us by e-mail if you would like to know if Mayfield products are available in your area.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Jan

2007 Features Flavors Chosen, but not Unveiled

Executive Team — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 13:04:29 -0400

At last, our four 2007 feature flavors for the Mayfield Select line have been chosen! Although I’m not allowed tip you off on the winners just yet, it was again a difficult decision, but we believe you’ll like our choices when they debut in March.

Almost 700 consumers, employees and visitors tried each flavor that made itself into the round of 12, and gave them a score of 1-10. There were a few suprises, but that happens every year. Of course it’s impossible for you to taste them now, but based on their names what marks would you have given them? Your choices are:

Coconut Crème Pie
Chocolate Caramel Toffee Cheesecake
Key Lime Pie
Chocolate Cream Pie
German Chocolate Cake
Double Cone Crunch
Boston Cream Pie
Baked Apple Pie
Peanut Butteriffic
Coconut Cake
Olde Savannah Caramel
Apple Brown Betty

If you didn’t get a chance to taste these contenders in September when we sampled them at our Athens and Braselton Visitors Centers, make plans to do it next year. Eating free ice cream is a great way to spend a day!

Alan

What kind of taster are you?

Mayfield Moms — Sat, 07 Oct 2006 11:33:55 -0400

Us Mayfield Moms get to meet a lot of people as we are out in the grocery stores sampling the yummy Mayfield ice cream flavors. This summer, during Flavor Decision ’06, we were able to categorize the samplers we met – what are you?

The categories for our samplers are:

The three second quickies

The smackers and MMMMMs

The lets not be hasty, I think I need another cup.

Now the quickies know after just a little taste of each. The smackers will MMM after each little bite and when they get to the one they like it is a louder MMMMM (and that is usually for the Blueberry but not always). The let's not be hasty group take their time and say MMMM it's so hard. I've narrowed it down to these two, let me see maybe I need another cup to be sure and then we get them to choose.

I am from Scotland and don’t have the typical Southern accent you here down in Atlanta so I usually get asked where I’m from and I tell them Scottie had me come all the way from Scotland so you could sample Mayfield Ice cream. You would not believe how many people I have met in the stores from Scotland, England and Ireland. I am wondering if we left any one over there.

Well, I have rambled on and I have not told you the half of it (aren't you glad). Oh! I have to share this with you though. One man asked me if I was Scotties wife!!!!! Now that's a first. I got so tickled.

Got to go. Have a great day everyone and look forward to seeing some of you in the grocery stores. Now, you can try to catch me at a Williams-Sonoma in Atlanta. We will be teaming up with Williams-Sonoma at Phipps Plaza, Lenox Square and the Mall of Georgia – we’ll see what category you fall into!!

Pamela Burdell.

A tale of two Moms

Mayfield Moms — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 08:59:20 -0400

My name is Pamela Burdell and for the past six years (almost seven) I have been part of Mayfield's MOM SQUAD. You're probably asking what is that. Well it is the best job ever. We work at all sorts of events promoting Mayfield's great tasting products and let me tell you that makes you very popular as everybody loves Mayfield Milk, Ice Cream and all our other goodies. So remember if you see a lady in a MOM SQUAD T-shirt she will more than likely be handing out a delicious Mayfield treat.

Sunday Olivia (she's another Mom) and I worked a 2 Day Breast Cancer Walk. It was great.

Olivia and I went into the Hilton (the event was in their parking lot). Olivia was asking a question about where we could get something to eat and I spotted a volunteer group and went over to speak and when they found out I was from Mayfield I caused a ruckus. They were sooooo excited. I thought they were going to tackle me for ice cream. I was like wait a minute ladies don't worry we have plenty, we will not run out. Olivia came over to see what all the noise was about (they were that loud).

The participants told us they had seen Mayfield advertised in their brochure and that was what kept them going on their 10 mile walk. We were a big hit.

Another Mom Story

Mayfield Moms — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 15:12:53 -0400

Hi! My name is Melinda and I have been a Mayfield Mom for over six years now and it is absolutely the best job you could ever have. I call it my “feel good job”!

About five years ago myself and another Mom were sent to Alabama for an extremely important event. Mayfield had worked very hard to get their products into Bruno’s Supermarkets. We were the ones chosen for this mission….we should have been afraid but we were pretty new to this job and a little too naive...

So here we go, two Mayfield Moms along with their two teenage daughters on a road trip. We traveled from East Tennessee to Birmingham, Alabama for a sampling at Bruno’s. I printed off our directions from mapquest and we were off. Of course, we didn’t realize there was an Alabama football game that day and that was our first obstacle. Really, driving in five lanes of traffic was our first obstacle. We had stopped for breakfast before we got into Birmingham and Mom # 2 had a belly ache and was in dire need of a toilet. She finally ended up going into a bar downtown with my daughter as a body guard. They laugh about the pink shag carpet on the steps and in the bathroom.

Back in the van and we are off to Bruno’s with about 45 minutes to spare. We were feeling the confindence - we can do this special event!! We find the store and we're even a little early. We run in the door toting all our sampling gear, ask the manager where he wants us to set up and he looks at us like we are crazy. (WE ARE!) "Just in the back near the freezers," he says.

So, we are talking with an employee about the concert that is scheduled for this store while we sample. The teenager's name was Aaron Carter, and he was very popular at the time. The employee says, "Oh, that is at the other Bruno’s across town." OH MY GOSH! We are at the wrong store! I know we tore our table down in 30 seconds and literally ran out the front door. How stupid can we be? At the wrong store for this “very special important event we know the two of you will be perfect for”!

We did get directions on the way out the door and we did arrive at the store only about 20 minutes late. No one was in the store anyway, everyone was outside watching the concert. We prayed all the way home that we wouldn’t get fired, we knew our careers as “Mayfield Moms” was going to be short lived. Actually, nothing was ever said about our little mix-up.

A day in the life of a Mayfield Mom

Mayfield Moms — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 08:32:20 -0400

Hi, my name is Brittney Smith and I am a Mayfield Mom in Birmingham. I know you all must to dying to hear about what a day as a Mayfield Mom just might hold, so here ya go...

This is a long story...........so I'll tell it.

We (I was with a fellow Mayfield Mom and great friend, Pam) stopped (after the Welcome Home Tribute in Huntsville) to use the restroom, regroup etc, just outside of Huntsville---keep in mind it was approx 10pm.

So, who pulls up to get gas, but the Krispy Kreme Man (you have to know my extreme obsession with KK---it is really ridiculous, but nonetheless true! I love it so much)..........so, of course, I am going to play the tired, exhausted, truck driving (quick flip of the hair) Mayfield Mom Card.

So, over I go...to approcach the guy. So, I tell him "We are the ice cream girls and you are to doughnut man....nothing would make me happier than to trade with you." He says "Uh, ok" and he looks very confused. So, I tell him I have Ice Cream on the truck, or a few coupons for a free 1/2 gallon, his choice.

So, he says" Well, I really only have these......and hands me two boxes of glazed, each containing 1/2 dozen". Not exactly what I would have chosen, but hey, it will do.......and it's free, and I am exhausted.

So, off I go, with my free doughnuts, and I give him the coupons. He says "Hey, Mayfield? What is Mayfield?"

I said "WHAT?" To my extreme shock, he begins to tell me that he is new here, and is from New York, and has never heard of Mayfield Ice Cream. Could I die? That almost seems unbelievable! So, I go to the Flavor Force Van (which at this time I am realizing that if he has never heard of us, he really thinks I am crazy.........a KK stalker) So, I give him a few Ice Cream sandwiches and tell him to take some home and try them. "Ok" he says.

So, Pam then goes in to use the restroom. When she leaves, I begin to just sit, and enjoy the rest. My hubby calls and I chat with him for a moment, etc.

She returns.....................................only to say............"I haven't even been inside yet, the KK guy said he loved the Ice Cream and we can have ALL we want"

WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAVE I DIED AND GONE TO KRISPY KREME HEAVEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! CAN THIS BE TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! AT ONLY THE MIDDLE OF MY VERY LONG DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So, in I go........almost head first, and get two dozen of assorted doughnuts (Pam controls herself and only gets 1 dozen).

So, to conclude my novel............I had to get my picture made in the back of the KK truck to prove it!

How we select ice cream flavors Part 2

Executive Team — Tue, 05 Sep 2006 20:02:31 -0400

Alright, so I've probably left you all hanging long enough. To continue from my previous post...

After the Mayfield ice cream committee selects its top 10 candidates it’s time to take our selection process to the folks who ultimately determine the success of our new flavors – Mayfield ice cream lovers!

In August we get bulk quantities of our 10 finalists shipped to our three plants in Athens, Tennessee, Braselton, Georgia and Birmingham, Alabama. With the help of our VisitorsCenter employees and the Mayfield Mom Squad, we conduct open samplings for all employees and visitors, who, like the committee members, score the flavors 1-10.

The final testing comes in early fall when the Mayfield sales force samples and scores the concepts at our fall sales meeting. This is the last group of people to impact Mayfield feature flavors for the following year.

By the time the winners are announced six months have passed and involved close to 600 taste testers. While this multi-layered process might seem cumbersome, it’s the best way we know to offer enticing, innovative flavors to consumers who want the creamiest ice cream to be found.

Enjoy!

Alan

How We Do What We Do

Product Team — Wed, 30 Aug 2006 17:49:00 -0400

As you can imagine in the ice cream plants our equipment is a far cry from the ice cream maker you used on your Grandmother's front porch, but the basic concept is not much different.

The picture you see is of a state-of-the-art ice cream freezer. This particular model has the capability of making 800 gallons of ice cream per hour and is in line with two other freezers of the same capacity which gives us 2,400 gallons per hour capability. Of course we do not need such a high volume piece of equipment for our smaller items such as novelties. We use freezers that have capacity of 250 to 300 gallons for smaller products.

As I mentioned earlier the concept from "front porch" to "plant floor" is not much different. As you did at your Granny's house (Granny was the term for my Grandmother Betty Conway. Making ice cream on her porch is one of many fond memories.) you put together the ingredients; milk or condensed milk, cream, sugar, secret recipe stuff, etc, then you put it in a metal cylinder, inserted the paddle in the metal cylinder, then set the metal cylinder in the bucket and applied the ice and rock salt to the outside. We were a little on the poor side so the first one I remember had a crank which we got to turn by hand. The ice and rock salt took the heat away from the mixture and the paddle ever so slowly pulled "ice cream" from the side of the cylinder until it was at the perfect texture for your family's taste.

In the "plant floor" version we begin with our ingredients but they are brought together in a mix using very sophisticated equipment to insure that the mixes are always consistent with the formulas. Our "secret recipe" stuff may include flavors, colors, even stabilization systems to help protect our products during distribution, which included the trip from the grocery to your freezer at home. Once our mix is perfect we introduce it into the barrel (cylinder) of our "mechanical freezer", no hand cranking here, and instead of ice and rock salt, liquid ammonia removes the heat from the mix and out comes ice cream. Now there are some differences. We inject what we refer to as overrun, industry lingo for air, into the mixture that will help us create the texture that we want for our ice cream. The mechanical freezers have the capability of storing individual recipes for our products so we know that these textures will be the same for our products every time. Remember, to Mayfield consistency is Elvis (The King). To have great ice cream you have to begin with a great mix and then you have to use a great freezer. They are the heart of our operations. Our mechanical freezers measure the smallest of details about what is going on inside the barrels (cylinders) and how the dashers (paddles) are working the mix to insure we have the smallest ice crystals possible when ice cream is discharged, most of the time at 21 degrees Fahrenheit. The smaller the crystals the more "Ice Creamier" the product.

How does the good stuff such as pecans, tracks from moose and turtles, delicious ribbons, etc. get into the ice cream you ask. That will be for our next installment.

Please ask us any questions that you have.

Thanks.

Eddie

Congratulations Blueberry Cream Pie - Now on to 2007!

Scottie Mayfield — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 16:35:41 -0400

Flavor Decision ‘06 has ended and Blueberry Cream Pie is our winner. It is now a permanent flavor, although Extreme Moose Tracks, Triple Brownie and Peanut Butter Cookie Dough will be around until spring 2007. We will introduce four new flavors in March 2007, and this is why I am posting this blog.

On September 7-8 and 14-15, from 9:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., we will taste test a number of potential flavors for 2007 at our Visitor Centers. During the first two days, September 7-8, we will taste Boston Cream Pie, Chocolate Cream Pie, German Chocolate Cake, Key Lime Pie, Baked Apple Pie and Apple Brown Betty. The next week, September 14-15, we will taste Chocolate Caramel Toffee Cheesecake, Olde Savannah Caramel, Coconut Cake, Coconut Cream Pie, Double Cone Crunch and Peanut Butterific.

So, I am inviting you to come to our Visitor Centers in Athens, TN or Braselton, GA to select your favorite flavors for 2007. We do not have a large supply of these potential flavors, so plan to visit early and let us know what you think of them.

Scottie

How do we select new ice cream flavors? Part 1

Executive Team — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 16:41:32 -0400

Hello. I’m Alan Owen and I’ve been marketing manager at Mayfield since 1999. As a native of Athens, Tennessee and the son of a 40-year Mayfield employee, I grew up with great admiration and respect for this brand and company, and was excited to return to East Tennessee following a 13-year stint with the Campbell Soup Company.

One of the questions I’m asked most frequently is, “How do you come up with new flavors?” It’s actually a very structured process that involves a lot of persons, ranging from company president Scottie Mayfield to consumers like you. By the time the four new feature flavors have been selected, over 500 sets of taste buds have been put to the test!

The selection process begins with the Mayfield ice cream committee, a group of our employees representing many different areas of our company including sales, marketing, production and quality assurance. Between April and June, this 11-person group receives about eight presentations from flavor vendors who are trying in earnest to have their flavor – or flavors – selected for entry into the Mayfield line.

Each vendor samples approximately 8-10 flavors, and the committee rates each on a scale from 1-10. Once the scores from all sampled products are tabulated, the committee meets again to review the scores and pare our finalists down to 10.

So how do we go from the top 10 flavors to the winning four? Stay tuned…

My Campaign Trail

Mayfield Moms — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 08:59:34 -0400

My name is Cayci. I'm not a Mayfield Mom, but this summer, my job has been much like a Mom's. I am an intern at Mayfield. Many college students my age take jobs because of the opportunity to travel. My job gives me the opportunity to travel dipping ice cream! For the past month, I have been on the campaign trail with Flavor Decision ‘06. Rallies I have attended include Athens, Atlanta, Birmingham, Bristol, Charlotte, Chattanooga, Greenville, Huntsville, Knoxville, and Montgomery. To the best of my knowledge, the only other “person” who has attended more Flavor Decision Rallies than me is Maggie, the 7 foot cow!

Each city is a new experience with different surroundings and diverse groups of people. For example, I find that the majority of people in Montgomery are business men and women standing in line for an hour in dress attire for a scoop of ice cream! Greenville, however, hosts more daycares and adults with young children. Just as the groups of people are different from city to city, the consensus of the group seems to change at each stop. Voting may reflect differently, but Birmingham seemed to be a Blueberry Cream Pie city while Charlotte was Peanut Butter Cookie Dough. I just never know what to expect until I get up to my elbows in ice cream!

The typical “Ice Cream” Day for me begins between 9:30 and 10 am. This is after the drive to the city which varies from 1 to 5 hours. Yes, I ride 5 hours in a car to dip ice cream for 3. Voting tables and dipping cabinets are set up by 11 am. Then the fun begins! For 3 solid hours, Mayfield dippers serve hot, hungry customers the flavor or flavors of their choice. Joking and kidding around is the only thing that keeps us sane while working in the miserably hot heat! We try our best to keep smiles on our faces, and for the most part, the public is appreciative. When the sour apple comes along, we just laugh it off and keep going! We close at 2 pm and have usually finished cleaning up by 2:30.

One of the biggest challenges and biggest jokes from this summer has been Maggie’s hat. “Who’s taking it this time?” After riding back from Charlotte, NC with Rob Mayfield and the hat, Rob realized that he could not leave it in his van until the next Monday because he needed the space over the weekend. Being over 4 feet tall and 3 feet wide, the hat is hard to get through the door facing to a building, so we moved it to the back of my small SUV. For the next two days I did nothing but answer, “Cayci, what is in the back of your car?” How do you explain to someone that you are carrying around a hat for a cow?

This summer I have been part of events that have served over 50,000 dips of ice cream. I gave up 2 days of my vacation and made my younger brother travel with me to attend Alabama Flavor Decision Rallies. I have walked into numerous convenience stores and Wal-Marts with ice cream all over my clothes, in my hair, on my arms, down my leg, and on my shoes! I have taken down displays in the rain and driven through thunderstorms. I have acquired an ice cream tan (like a farmer’s tan but with shorts) and have been sun burnt numerous times. BUT! I would not have missed this for the world! I love my job, meeting new people and getting to work with branch personal that I only get to see a couple of times per year. My sun burn will eventually heal, and I will hopefully catch up on the sleep I missed, but the experiences I now have I can keep forever!

- Cayci

Where's my Mayfield Ice Cream?

Jan Montgomery — Mon, 24 Jul 2006 11:56:35 -0400

The question that I hear most often from consumers is "Where can I find my favorite flavor of Mayfield ice cream?" Sometimes, the person has moved or is moving to a new area and wants to know what stores carry our products (this can be ice cream and/or milk). Or they have gone shopping and when they stopped at the ice cream display to pick up a carton of their favorite Mayfield flavor (mine is Moose Tracks) there was none on the shelf and no one at the store could tell them why. I also hear from people who remember ice cream flavors we had when they were young and they want to know if we are ever going to make them again. If you ever experience a similar situation, then feel free to pick up the phone and call us (1-800-MAYFIELD) or send us an e-mail and we'll get the answer for you.

I have already received several questions from our blog readers, and enjoyed reading and answering them - so keep them coming!

See ya!

Jan