Vegetarianism is a way of life for Lisa Schleiben - she started young.
I stopped eating seafood when I was 4 ... chicken when I was 5 and I stopped eating beef freshman year of high school,"" she said, ""so total vegetarian for the past seven years.""
She works hard to make sure what she eats is meat-free by reading labels and quizzing waiters.
Staying vegetarian on a big campus hasn't been difficult for the UW-Madison junior - except when it comes to the ice cream she grew up on: Babcock Hall's Chocolate Peanut Butter.
Imagine the shock when Schleiben, lover of animals and eater of plants, discovered pork gelatin was an ingredient in Babcock's ice cream recipe.
She noticed a sign last year in Gordon Commons about the gelatin and immediately began talking to employees to find out what was going on.
""I talked to somebody at the Union about it. [She told me], 'None of our products have pork in it, what are you talking about?' and just brushed me aside,"" Schleiben said.
After visiting the offices at Babcock Hall, Schleiben had what she described as a curt conversation with a manager there. Her fears were confirmed.
""It irritated me because I've been eating Babcock ice cream my whole life,"" Schleiben said, ""and I was just finding out about this last year.""
Gelatin, however, plays a crucial role in stabilizing the ice cream and keeping it solid, according to Scott Rankin, a UW-Madison associate professor in food science.
""Flavor-wise, gelatin is so flavor-neutral that it lets the flavor the milk and whatever flavor you add to the system really come through,"" Rankin said. ""It doesn't bind many flavors [and] also attributes to the textural aspect of it.""
The gelatin itself is extracted from animal connective tissue by means of boiling, according to Rankin.
While gelatin is found in many normal, everyday foods like Altoids, Yoplait yogurt and jellybeans, it is not a common ingredient in ice cream, Rankin said.
The presence of gelatin in Babcock ice cream, because it is derived from pork specifically, poses a problem for more than vegetarians. Some religions, such as Judaism, prohibit eating pork.
""It's a bit complicating because there are different standards in kosher,"" Rabbi Mendel Matusos, co-director of Chabad at UW-Madison said. ""The reason why one would consider it kosher is because the gelatin itself is not edible.""
According to Rankin, Babcock has a certificate of kashrut, which says the gelatin is kosher. However, Matusos said not all Jews would consider it as such.
""The Orthodox perspective is that [the gelatin] is a product of food and it's meant for food, so it's irrelevant that at a certain stage in between it's inedible,"" Matusos said.
In general, Jews view all pork products as unkosher, Matusos said. The difference when it comes to pork gelatin is some reform Jews might consider it acceptable to eat.
""I think there'll be a lot of students that would choose not to [eat the ice cream],"" Matusos said. ""There are a lot of different details in kosher, and there are many students that observe certain areas of kosher.""
He also pointed out that, while many students are relaxed about following certain kosher guidelines, not eating pork is the most observed kosher practice.
Muslim students follow a similar set of dietary guidelines to kosher, although there is more consistency in the practice across sects.
""If it is definitely gelatin made from pork, most Muslims would consider this a violation of their dietary laws to eat it,"" Asifa Quraishi, assistant professor at the UW-Madison Law School and faculty advisor for the Muslim Student Asscociation, said.
Like kosher laws, the most common adherence to dietary law in Islam is abstaining from pork, according to Sarrah Abulughod, vice president of the MSA.
""I'd say we have all ends of the spectrum [on campus] as far as practice,"" Abulughod said. ""As far as eating pork, if they have any level of practice, they will not be eating the pork gelatin.""
Like Jewish students, many Muslim students are more relaxed in their practice.
According to Sabih Khwaja, president of the MSA, the international Islamic students are typically more strict.
Khwaja, like Abulughod, emphasizes the pork restrictions.
""It's kind of just standard in our faith,"" Khwaja said. ""As Muslims, we follow two sources: the example of the Prophet and the Quran, and both have forbidden eating anything from pig.""
As for Schleiben, the Chocolate Peanut Butter ice cream was no longer worth it.
""I was really mad at them so I stopped eating it,"" she said. ""I think that there should at least be a sign, just saying, 'hey, these flavors contain pork gelatin.'""
Schleiben's discovery and reaction are common, according to Rankin, who said there are a few inquiries every year about the ingredient, although use of pork gelatin is part of an old recipe.
""Babcock Ice Cream is kind of an icon on campus and the formulation is really decades old,"" Rankin said.
Not that Babcock hasn't tried to change the recipe.
""A few years ago, there was an interest in replacing gelatin,"" Rankin said. ""We initiated this big research project. Many officials on campus were involved and we couldn't do it. We couldn't make ice cream perform the same as with gelatin.""
Not wanting to change what Rankin referred to as ""the Hershey bar of Babcock Hall,"" officials developed the Super Premium line of ice cream. This product comes in four flavors (Caramel Creek, Chocolate Turtle, Badger Blast and Berries Jubilee) made without the gelatin.
Khwaja suggested serving Ben & Jerry's ice cream at the Unions, like is done in the dining halls.
""There were a few cases over the summer where I was kind of hungry for ice cream ... I think they only had one option at this Union - they had one tub of Premium, but it was empty,"" Khwaja said.
""It's always empty. People always take it.""
According to Rankin, the pork gelatin is not a secret by any means.
""It's certainly on all of our labels, so if you come in to buy a half gallon or a quart or anything, it'll be depicted on that,"" he said. ""We try to be as absolutely transparent as possible.""
Using signs might be a smart move for the dining halls, unions and Babcock Hall, since, according to Rankin, the labeling requirements for ice cream counters are different and not always easily accessible. Otherwise, reading labels is key for information.
However, don't count on employees or waiters to know what they're serving, Schleiben warns.
""They don't devote their lives to knowing what's in it and they don't really care unless it really affects them,"" Schleiben said. ""So I guess just researching it as much as you can, and if you're in doubt and you care about it, just don't eat it.""
Rankin added that Babcock is open to suggestions that might help students make informed choices.
""If there's some move we can make in that direction to make it more [politically correct],"" Rankin said, ""we'd be happy to do so.
