Round and Round With a 40 Pound Block of Cheese

While at WSU's relatively small cheese making operation, the manager told us about the large Darigold cheesemaking operation in Sunnyside, WA. According to the president of Darigold it is "one of the largest and most efficient state-of-the-art cheese plants in the world..." The tour is supposed to be great.

Nancy went to work on Monday morning, trying to figure out how we can get our hands on some of this "local" cheese. The folks in Sunnyside were very helpful, but in what is becoming a recurring experience, we found that a food system built around maximizing efficiency and profit, does not lend itself to identifying where the food originates. It turns out that Sunnyside churns out over 400,000 lbs of cheese every day, but most of it, at least right now, is shipped to far off places like Wisconsin. So if you want local Pacific Northwest cheese, you might need to do one of those cheese tours of Wisconsin. Another option they told us is to find a restaurant that buys their 40lb blocks from Food Services of America, and have them cut us off a chunk. Or we could find some friends who want to go in on buying a 40lb block and share it. Or maybe I can take that $600 tax stimulus, buy 7 blocks of cheese, and become the local cheesemonger. I sort of just wanted an excuse to write cheesemonger. Cheesemonger. Cheesemonger. Cheesemonger. It's a fun word, you have to admit.

If you're wondering about why we would ship Pacific Northwest cheese to Wisconsin, a quick look at wholesale prices tells the tale. In the western market for 40 lb blocks 'o cheese, the price is currently $2.16/lb, whereas the Wisconsin market price is $2.41/lb. I'm no expert on transportation costs but I guess in the end, the math works. With all the news about increasing food prices you may be interested to know that two years ago the cost was $1.45/lb in the western market. Consider that your commodities market minute.

In other random cheese news, Tillamook ships their cheese to Oakland to be shredded, and then has it shipped back north to be distributed.

   

Comments

[Craig]

First, important to note that Darigold is a farmers owned coop. So local and good. In addition, we like their cheese but would like to see distributed locally. Judy and I are will to front up to $500 for Rounds of cheese to be sold at the Millwood or other Spokane area farmers markets. Will split any profits (not great expectations here) 50/50 with any vendor who will sell this cheese at the markets. Let us know who might be interested. No RISK to vendor.

[Keith]

Now Wisconsin is home of the Green Bay Packers.

Read, "Packers fans are often referred to as cheeseheads. The term is often used to refer to people from the state of Wisconsin in general (because of its cheese production)"

Next I'm going to find out that Laverne and Shirley were really bottling beer brewed in Washington and that the Milwaulkee Brewers is a misnomer as well.

I just had to say "misnomer". Misnomer. Misnomer. Cheeseburger. Cheeseburger.

[Kate]

The local cheesemonger? You could be the second one - I work at Saunders Cheese Market in downtown Spokane. We mostly carry cheeses from all over, but we do carry Sally Jackson sheep and goat's milk cheese from Oroville, WA, and they are delicious!

[nancy goodwin]

Hi Kate!
We checked out Saunders cheese the first of the year and you all told us about the Oroville cheese. We called them that day to see if we could get some since you didn't have any then. They said it wasn't available until... now? Do you have any that we can buy now? We would love to buy some, and we love your store. Also, can you tell me the taste difference between sheep and goat cheese? And when are the months it is typically available? Thank you! So glad you responded on the blog!

[Kate]

We'll be getting it in very soon - we heard from Sally on Saturday. I think early next week? I work on Tuesday - I'll email you after I check the date.

I'm so glad you've come in, though! Cow's milk cheese is more available year-round than sheep and goat's milk. There are some sheep and goat's milk cheeses that are year-round, but for the most part it's because the cheesemakers stagger the breeding of the critters in order to provide milk on a continuous basis; also they make more of a variety, with both aged and fresh cheese. Sally Jackson makes just one variety for each type of milk, and she only has kids and lambs in the spring, so the milk is only available after that. Sheep's milk cheese is nuttier, sweeter, and earthier. It has more fat than goat's milk. Goat's milk is tangier and a little more gamy. Sally's cheeses are along those lines, but a little more complex.

By the way, I love the blog. I've caught up so far and can't wait to read more about your adventures!