In a message dated 97-06-02 19:34:43 EDT, you write:

<<  Does anyone know what  the requirements are in ingredient labels?  i.e.
if the Ud label means  there is dairy in it, why isn't there any in the
ingredients list?  If it
 means they produce it on machines that also do ice cream or yogurt, how
 well (if at all) are they required to clean the machinery?  If it means
 they have a machine that does dairy too close to the one that does sorbet,
 is the Ud just a religious technicality, or is it possible to get splashes
 from the ice cream line into the sorbet line? >>
Not to claim that I am an expert, but, can you imagine your machinery the
size of a block with bins as big as a garage and trying to clean between
lines of manufacturers?  The D means either product contains dairy or that it
is run on lines with shared equipment with products with dairy.  I wish all
companies would do us a favor by disclosing this on the labels. As allergy
awareness is increasing, more and more companies are showing things on the
labels.   I understand that peanut butter and butter are hard to
clean....just like it is in our houses.  Maybe it doesn't contain dairy, but
my educated guess is that Ben and Jerry's shares equipment with something
else.  Just like Quaker Rice Cakes.  Have you tried Rice Dream??  My hat goes
out to General Mills for labeling the cereal that was making my son sick with
a D, even though the ingredients didn't contain dairy.  They now disclose all
products contaiminated with the top 8 allergens.  They also note it on box
tops and in the instructions.