F. Rothman Enterprises LLC  

CONSUMERS AND CHEESE

   Looked at subjectively, the purchase of cheese and dairy products touches us all in an indirect manner. As household consumers we are bombarded with Kraft products, the dairy council's television campaign or a new Pizza of the Month Club. Millions of pounds of American cheese have been distributed free along with butter, and the USDA regularly donates milk for school lunch programs. 

   But for most of us there is no free lunch. In our jobs we must become knowledgeable about all of the socio-economic reasons for the government's controlling the pricing of the commodities of the dairy industry. 

   America's economy is based in a large part on our agricultural development. Twenty-five percent (25%) of all dairy products in the world are produced in the United States. This of course is of enormous consequence. Not only is this quantitively large, but it deals with our balance of payment otherwise known as American trade deficits. Think about it for a moment -- were it not for the cattle industry in this country the grain business would not have developed as fully. Because of our love of beef and products of the dairy herds, the government is attempting to stabilize the price of the most expensive center-of-plate item. But because the government has failed to come up with an equitable way of reducing milk production -- of supporting the farmers in changing their crops from dairy cattle, away from feed grains, to edible cash crops -- we are stuck with volumes of commodity cheese, milk and butter stored or dumped because of over production. This over-abundance is monitored by the government's C.C.C. (Commodity Credit Corporation). 

   On the other hand, the daily purchasing by major supermarket chains, foodservice distributors and processing manufacturers as the business segment of the marketplace is based on the prices of the Minnesota-Wisconsin 40# Current Cheddar Block Market and the Barrel Market. Every Friday in Greenbay, Wisconsin, these prices are established after offers from large, commercial repackers and manufacturers are accepted by traders, farmers' co-ops and cheddar manufacturers. The prices of approximately 60-70% of all types of cheeses are based on these two markets, usually on an averaged monthly market or else on a straight weekly formula. Italian style cheeses are the most prolific followed by cheddar and processed cheeses. 

   There are many pricing formulas that determine costs. The Minnesota-Wisconsin Cheddar Block and Barrel Markets are only a suggested schedule. A manufacturer could produce a drier cheese with less water, or a richer cheese with a higher content of butter fat (B.F.), and therefore influence pricing. A manufacturer may leave the cream in his product only because he has no market to sell it separately at a higher price; this doesn't necessarily make a better piece of cheese but it is richer. Chemical analysis is determined and then strict USDA regulations conclude how the cheese can be labeled. Cheddar must have a minimum of 50% B.F., with a maximum moisture of 39%. Salt content is also crucial at 1.5% to 2.0%. Delivery costs from Wisconsin to the East Coast versus less freight cost from New England, New York or Pennsylvania also effects the pricing. 

   What is left up to the astute buyer is to determine the best cheese for a particular situation. For example, the correlation of the moisture content to the acidity PH factor determines how well a cheese will melt and also how well a piece of cheese will age to develop a bite. 

   Government regulations for conforming to the specifications of various cheeses is available through the Government Printing Office. Most state or federal agriculture departments are usually good sources for information. Specific associations for various dairy products are abundant, 

   for example: 

      Middle Atlantic Milk Marketing Area
      Advertising and Promotion Agency
      216 Carroll Bldg.
      8600 LaSalle Rd.
      Towson, MD 21204
      (301) 321-0266

      Cheese Importers Assn..of America, Inc.
      460 Park Ave.
      New York, NY 10022
      (212) 753-7500

      National Cheese Institute and American Butter Institute
      110 N.Franklin St.
      Chicago, IL 60606
      (312) 263-2733