Edible antifreeze promises perfect ice cream

According to New Scientist edible antifreeze developed by researchers at University of Wisconsin-Madison, US could keep ice cream tasty and smooth, and prevent other frozen foods from being ruined.

The taste of good ice cream depends on a blend of flavour,
temperature, and texture – what food scientists call "mouth
feel". The formation of tiny ice crystals, each around 15 to
20 microns wide, is crucial to making smooth ice cream. But if ice
cream is subjected to sudden temperature fluctuation – when
transported home from the store, for example – these crystals can
grow to 40 microns or larger, as water melts and refreezes. This can
ruin the texture of good ice cream, making it gritty to eat. It can
also damage frozen soft fruits.

Food chemist Srinivasan
Damodaran at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is
experimenting with edible antifreeze made from gelatin, which is much
more effective at preventing ice crystals from ruining ice cream, he
says. Damodaran's antifreeze is made by partly digesting gelatin
using an enzyme found in papaya, called papain.
Damodaran studied the amino acid sequence of the most effective
protein and found it was "strikingly similar" to that of a
natural antifreeze found in snow
fleas, a species of springtail that remains active throughout
winter. The new antifreeze has similar physical properties and
probably acts the same way, says Damodaran.

Others are also developing edible antifreeze. The European food
company Unilever has patented yeast genetically modified to produce
antifreeze from Arctic fish blood. Meanwhile, Canadian researchers
are testing one made from winter wheat.