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Airgas, Inc. has apparently run out of gas -- specifically nitrous oxide. Given that Airgas is the foremost manufacturer of nitrous oxide in the U.S., there is now a nationwide shortage.
Although the problems supposedly date back to an August plant explosion in Florida (which apparently was only reported locally), no one really noticed a problem until coffee shops started running out of whipped cream lately.
Now the news media is being whipped up into a frenzy over the possibility of a holiday desserts without whipped cream.
Time reports on this "dire" issue:
Stock up on canned whipped cream during your next jaunt to the grocery store, because we—as a nation—might be running out soon. That's right: the most important topping (or stand-alone ingredient, for some) in the dessert world is in dire short supply this holiday season. According to the Chicago Tribune, this terrifying fact is all due to a national shortage in nitrous oxide, the gas used to make aerosol cans of whipped cream function the way they're supposed to (among other things).
While this gas shortage reporting about missing coffee toppings may seem silly, it really is no laughing matter. Other Airgas plants beyond Florida are apparently also having problems, so some reports suggest remaining nitrous oxide stocks are now being restricted to medical use until replacement supplies can be imported from Europe. A bulletin sent out to store managers at regional grocery chain Market Basket notes:
Airgas, Inc. had an explosion in their Florida plant and a total loss. Their Maitland, Ontario plant was shut down for safety reasons, and their Yazoo City, Mississippi facility continues to have issues with two lines. Airgas will begin importing nitrous oxide from Europe in December. However, for now, all nitrous oxide available is being used for medical purposes.
More details at the Chicago Tribune .
[Continues...]
What I personally find hilarious about all of this holiday dessert hysteria is that whipped cream is one of the simplest things to make in your kitchen. Do you have any device capable of agitating enough to whip air into a liquid (e.g., hand mixer, stand mixer, immersion blender, food processor, even a bowl and a whisk)? You can make whipped cream in anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes. (1) Pour some heavy cream (or "whipping cream"). (2) Whip until desired texture is achieved. (3) Toward the end, add any sugar or other flavorings (many people will put at least a tiny bit of vanilla extract). The end. (Minor caution: do pay attention and don't whip beyond where the cream starts to get quite stiff, or you will turn it into homemade butter.)
There's a lot of kitchen lore about having to put bowls and beaters into the freezer, etc., but that's really only necessary if you're whipping by hand with a whisk. And if you've never made homemade whipped cream, be prepared for something significantly better than the can. In addition, you get to choose exactly the texture you like -- do you want it nearly stiff and very light? Or dense, very rich, and a little runny? Feel free to add a little flavor -- a dash of cinnamon, some cocoa powder, a tablespoon or two of your favorite liqueur, a little orange zest, or even something more exotic.
Seriously, I can't even figure out why anyone would buy the canned stuff, nitrous oxide shortage or not. Every time I serve the "real thing" for guests, they act like it's the best thing they've ever eaten. Far from a holiday disaster, maybe we should look at this as an opportunity to make America whip cream again.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday December 16 2016, @02:39PM
It's not just the minute or two that it takes to do the whipping. It's having the whip and the bowl in the first place, it's cleaning the preparation dishes after preparation is done. With N2O propellant in a can, you save all those steps, all that labor and support equipment, and you can just take the coffee from your K-cup (in special holiday flavors) dispense it into a festive holiday themed disposable cup, spray some cream on top, then dispose of the containers when done.
Jeez, people, next you'll be suggesting that we keep our own dairy animals.
Seriously, though, shaker can whipped cream is pretty much a poster child for the disposable society - a few ounces of cream contained in a refrigerated metal can, top a few coffees and desserts, then send the can to the landfill or maybe recyclers. I suppose it is kind of old-fashioned; frozen pies come pre-topped, and those K-cups are getting better at imitating cream toppings - why bother with a separate can and extra preparation step?
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(Score: 2) by sgleysti on Friday December 16 2016, @04:00PM
Congratulations JoeMerchant,
You gave me comment whiplash at this phrase
Seriously, though, shaker can whipped cream is pretty much a poster child for the disposable society
Well done.
I have made a pie entirely from scratch just once, a raisin pie. It was a lot of fun. The only time I'll ever use whipped cream of any time is with strawberries, and when I do, it's the real kind. I was so surprised that medical uses were not the major concern in the article, although it makes sense that they would use a lot less N2O than canned whipped cream.
(Score: 4, Interesting) by JoeMerchant on Friday December 16 2016, @04:28PM
I think all these type of products boil down to "making people feel like they have servants when they really don't." You want whipped cream, here you can have it without all the work, sure it sucks compared to something that could be produced by hand labor, but, you can't afford other people's hand labor and you don't want to do it yourself, so...
I read something recently about British ex-pats in the third world being able to afford a servant or two, the quote was something like "a single servant is worth a whole house full of appliances." So very true. Now, pardon me while I go reset my robotic lawn mower...
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(Score: 2) by sgleysti on Friday December 16 2016, @05:01PM
That's interesting and makes a lot of sense. Personally, I find these kind of tasks enjoyable. I recently bought a hand cranked coffee grinder and find that it's quite fun to use. It has a gearbox, so it isn't tedious.
I love baking bread by hand, and if I had more extra money/space, I would probably buy a small hand cranked grain mill to grind the wheat myself. Perhaps it's a matter of perspective?
Even if I had servants -- which I never will -- they would probably use appliances. All the appliances I have are: vacuum cleaner (no alternative for carpet), electric kettle (could use the stove), microwave (could use the stove), toaster (could use the stove), rice cooker (could use the stove), pressure cooker (could do without, but beans would take a lot longer), refrigerator (no real alternative outside of winter), coffee grinder (I have used a large mortar and pestle but don't recommend it), dehumidifier / fans / aircon (could just put up with heat / humidity).
Perhaps the hypothetical servants would use the stove for more tasks than I do ;) And I will entirely admit that the rice cooker makes me feel like a machine is doing my work for me, and a better job of it. It might actually be my favorite appliance, and for the exact reason that you mentioned.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday December 16 2016, @07:33PM
My wife and I have opposite opinions of rice cookers: she loves them, I think they take almost as much work while making an often inferior finished product, though if you measure "artfully" you can get great rice out of a cooker, too. If you can measure the water, maintain enough attention to be there within a few minutes of when it starts to boil, measure the rice, set a timer, and be there to shut it off when the timer stops, rice in a pot comes out as well or better than rice in a cooker, for me. Now, if you aren't mentally and physically available to perform those 3 steps over a ~25 minute period, all kinds of things can go wrong in a pot on the stove, sometimes horribly wrong, whereas the worst that happens in a rice cooker is: cold rice for breakfast.
I suppose the rice cooker is a low-tech robot, of sorts, performing those steps for you. More or less as the N2O in the can is part of an automated whipping and delivery process. The robot that mows my grass hasn't saved me any labor overall (I used to let the grass grow quite a bit more between cuttings), but it has transformed the work from something I had to devote several consecutive hours to, getting sweaty and dirty, often out in the hot sun, to a matter of "unsticking" it from places it gets trapped once or twice a week, and resurfacing those areas to be more "robot compatible" when I get around to it. I spend the same hours on lawn maintenance, but the lawn looks better and the hours are much more at my discretion than they used to be with a push or riding mower.
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