If you're looking for a way to cool down this weekend you could join News 3's Chief Meteorologist John Fredericks, Lisa Hidalgo and Sports Director Rick Strasser at the Third Annual Ice Cream Eating Contest!

John and Lisa will be emceeing the event and Rick would be defensive his title. Last year he joined for first place by eating five ice cream sandwiches in five minutes.

It's occurrence at Noon on Saturday at the Galleria Mall. It's an occasion to benefit the Public Education Foundation.

Also, Meadow Gold Dairies would be as long as ice cream eating tips to get the maximum flavor out of your ice cream.

The Annual Antique Show and Sale is being held from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at Mountain home United Methodist Church, Route 390/191, Mountain home. Admission is $4 per person. An ice cream social and a band are planned for 7 p.m. Friday on the church grounds. For information, call Maryann at 570 595-2501.

A new designer ice cream, made potential by genetic modification, threatens to set off a "time bomb" in the health of British children, scientists are warning.

The scientists, from Britain and Canada, have prepared an official committee that this month would rule on the safety of the ice cream, being sold increasingly worldwide by the food giant Unilever.

It has an artificial protein copied, through a GM process, from a fish living in the frigid waters of the bottom of the North-west Atlantic.

An "anti-freeze" protein permits the fish - the ocean pout - to survive extreme cold.

Unilever, the world's biggest ice cream maker, says using its fake equivalent allows it "to produce products with more intense flavor delivery, a wider range of novel textures and more intricate shapes."

"Age does not diminish the extreme disappointment of having a scoop of ice cream fall from the cone," said American humorist Jim Fiebig. And in the Middle East, where temperatures soar above those enjoyed by most Americans, this sense of displeasure is perhaps magnified.

But with the ice cream sector practicing growth of some 5% a year in the GCC, the market is ever more geared towards satisfying a growing appetite for numerous types of ice cream across the region.

The region's biggest market for ice cream, Saudi Arabia, was value about SR 1 billion (US $266 million) across sales of about 61 million liters in 2005, according to Euro monitor International, a UK-based research organization. "Strong domestic demand is stimulated by the year round hot climate and an abundance of locally produced milk in the country," said Utku Tansel, Euro monitor International’s research analyst for Turkey and Saudi Arabia.

It's Ice Cream Month in America, and there's no improved way to celebrate than by eating a big dish of your preferred flavor of this summer treat.

Each year, American families consume an average of 23 quarts of ice cream. I spoke with Dave Reid, chief marketing officer at Hudsonville Creamery and Ice Cream Co., to find out more about ice cream. (They've been making ice cream in Michigan for 80 years.)

Nationally, 29 percent of Americans favor vanilla ice cream over all other flavors. According to Reid, the same is true in West Michigan.

The Fair Grove Historical Society would hold the 30th annual Fair Grove Ice Cream Social start at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Wommack Mill. Admission is free.

Peggy Schletty, organizer of the Fair Grove Farmers' Market, said, "The ice cream social would, of course, feature ice cream and great homemade pies and cakes as well as fresh fruits and vegetables from some of the local growers in the area".

"Hamburgers, brats, hot dogs, chuck wagon beans and barbecued pork sandwiches, along with new squeezed lemonade would be served."

This is a significant month for one of our preferred foods — ice cream. Today is the 100th ceremony of the birthday of Tom Carvel, who made-up the machine that makes soft-serve ice cream.

July also marks the opening of the ice cream sundae, made by Wisconsin druggist Edward Berner in 1881 to skirt the strict Sabbath laws of the time. And the ice cream cone became well-liked this month in 1904 at the Saint Louis World's Fair.

To top it off, this Sunday has been chosen National Ice Cream Day. We eat an average of 27 pounds of frozen dairy products each year, plus 17 pounds of regular ice cream and seven pounds of the low-fat variety.

Swiss food maker Nestle has launched the premium ice cream brand Move-n-pick on the Chinese market, where it says it sees mounting demand for sumptuousness food products.

The product, to be dispersed at first in top hotels and restaurants in Shanghai, would cost 46 Yuan for a single serve pot, considerably higher than the cost of ice cream sold in most Chinese retail outlets, which could be as low as 3 Yuan.

However Nestle says it plans to ante out a position as a leader in China's 'super-premium' ice cream market.

"With the rapidly expanding foodservice and retail sectors and the increasing demand for premium food products by Chinese consumers, we believe that the super-premium ice cream category offers a significant long-term business opportunity for Movenpick," said Ken Donaldson, head of the group's ice cream business in China.

"There are many consumers, especially in Shanghai and other major metropolitan areas, that are willing to pay more for top quality ice cream," he added.

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- A 6-year-old girl was gunshot while standing with a group of children by an ice cream truck, in a blast of bullets that tore during a Brooklyn neighborhood.

Police say the aggression erupted at concerning 9:30 last night on 360 Clifton Place in Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood.

A witness says everybody started organization when six to eight shots were fired.

Police say the girl was gunshot in the leg and an 18-year-old man was shot once in the chest and arm. Both are in steady condition.

Police have no reason for the shooting and are still looking for the gunman.

Ice cream lovers in Port Stewart would have the chance to taste the sweetness of success if Italy wins the World Cup this weekend.

The owners of Morelli's in the seaside town have been gifted customers since the tournament began that, if the Azzurri won the coveted prize, they will give out free ice-cream.

Owner Damien Morelli said when they determined to put up a sign advertising the gesture, they did not think it may be this year - Marcello Lippi's men were not presentation any signs of brilliance in the early stages of the tournament.

But now, it's seems like the popular family-owned business would have to honor its promise.

"Over the past week, we have had a lot of people coming in asking us if we will really be doing it," he explained.

"And the answer is: yes. As soon as the whistle blows on Sunday and Italy has won the World Cup, we will be giving out free ice-cream for an hour."

SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt., July 6 -- The judges in Vermont ice cream-maker Ben & Jerry's have lined out pepperoni pizza with anchovy whirl as a valid access in their contest for new flavors.

That was among some 35,000 entries for new flavors submitted to the benjerry.com Web site, as was vanilla ice cream with Jujubes in it, said chief taster Arnold Carbone.

"The ice cream will melt before you got the Jujubes out of your mouth," Carbone told the New York Post.

He said sour cream ice cream with onion and potato chips also did not make the cut in last year's contest.

Carbone, whose official title is Conductor of Bizarre & D, said one past winner was Chubby Hubby, with peanut butter-filled, salty, chocolate-covered and pretzels.

He recommended those wanting to enter before the competition closes at the end of the month avoid being too conservative.

"I just think that anyone entering this contest should go kind of wild," he told the Post.

Who can eat the majority ice cream in two minutes? That's the focus of a competition at noon Saturday at Washington Crown Center, 1500 W. Chestnut St., Washington, Pa., to advantage a group of local youth and adult volunteers who would travel to Tennessee to help rebuild homes in impoverished areas.

Sponsored by the center, iVenditore and Eddy's Ice Cream, the contest breaks participants into three age categories: 12 and under; 13-18 years; and adults.

Registration is $5, and forms could be picked up at Washington Crown Center customer service desk or at iVenditore in the food court.

The winner in each age group would win a $50 gift card to use at Washington Crown Center.
Details: 412-621-6220 or www.mulberrystreetcreamery.com

The Friends of the Westport Center for Senior Activities would host the third annual "Ice Cream Social" at the center on Sunday, July 16 from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Residents of all ages are invited to the occasion featuring free ice cream, a balloon man, music, face painting, plus a free Frisbee to the first 150 young people who attend, an announcement said.

In addition, the Westport Fire Department would show a fire truck for viewing and climbing.

"This event marks a wonderful opportunity for the people of our community to become acquainted, or reacquainted with this outstanding facility and grounds," the announcement said.

"It promises to be an important stop in an exciting weekend of town activities, which include the Art Show and the Westport Library book sale."

The center is situated at 21 Imperial Ave. For more information, phone (203)341-5099.

ANGIER, N.C. — This ice cream comes with a strange stipulation — customers should sign a waiver before tasting it because it's so hot.
Cold Sweat, a flavor sold at Sunny Sky's, an ice cream shop on N.C. 55, is completed with three kinds of pepper and two kinds of hot sauce.

"It tastes like fire — with a side of fire," said Scott McCallum, a regular customer, who was eating the more anesthetize butter pecan flavor.

"I thought it was a cool idea, but I didn't think he'd make it that hot," McCallum said of owner Scott Wilson.

Wilson ongoing out experimenting with jalapenos in vanilla ice cream to plea to Hispanic customers — which was unsuccessful — and worked his way up to Cold Sweat.

The waiver for the fiery mixture has dozens of signatures. Pregnant women and people with health problems are not hypothetical to eat it. Anyone younger than 18 needs the consent of a guardian.

"Ithaca shall cease, desist, or relinquish its claim as the true sole, unique, hometown, of the ice cream sundae," the mayor said.

Mayor Peterson is kindly responding to a Wisconsin city, Two Rivers, which recently demanded Ithaca stop claiming it's where the first Sundae was enjoyed. The "sundae wars" are underway, but the most excellent sundae historian says there's no doubt sundaes were first scooped in Ithaca in the late 18 hundreds.

"Ithaca is not only responsible for the iconic dessert, precisely the way we think about a sundae today, but Ithaca has the first documentation," said historian Michael Turback.

But the stakes are senior than just bragging rights. While battling over sundae history strength seem trivial, Ithaca's tourism department says there can be real advantage to being known as the definitive home of the sundae.