… have been falling?
With the crop wipe outs in Iowa, I was expecting cheese to shoot through the roof on feed price fears. What am I missing?
Not complaining, just wondering. I know the cheese market isn’t exactly a pillar of efficiency, but I was expecting a reaction.
I am paying over .20 more the last two weeks. Maybe your day is coming. You might want to stock up.
I’m referring to the cash market at the Chicago Merc, which is what my prices are based off of. I pay block plus based on the average price 3 weeks ago.
Prices have been falling for the past 4 weeks: http://cheesereporter.com/charchives.htm
Not much use in stocking up when my prices will be dropping over the next three weeks.
It was down another 2 cents today. I was expecting a decent sized runup.
OK, I see what you mean. Thanks for the link.
its part of a marketing strategy called “fail safe”. which basically fills you with a sense of security that is false. you start getting comfortable and all of a sudden the prices will go up, catching you off guard. similar tactic is used in arm wrestling. when you make the opponent he is winning by giving him little advanced (by loosening your grip) and all of a sudden push full force. i hope this helps.
Piper,
What are you at with the block plus. I am at plus .24 for Sorrento whole mil mozz.
Jim
I’m at block + .17 for Sysco’s Arrezzio whole milk mozz. I believe the Arrezzio brand is private label Sorrento.
Your “plus” can depend a lot on where you’re located at. The block price includes only 300 miles of freight. If you’re a long way from California or Wisconsin you’ll pay more due to the freight charges.
Cheese was down another 2 cents today!
Piper,
I am in buffalo (western NY). where abouts are you? .07 is a big difference. Do you think that could all be freight charges. Also, how much do you use? I use about 1000 pounds a week.
Jim
Without giving out my exact location, I’m about as far from California cheese as you are from Green Bay. I also use much less than you… about 600 pounds per week. It sounds like you might have some negotiating room there!
You might get a lower price by using your distributor’s private label brand. I think the Sorrento brand is going to command more even if it’s the same cheese. That’s assuming of course that you find an acceptable brand.
If you use Sysco at all, ask for a sample of their Arrezzio. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how well it compares to Sorrento. It may even be exact. All of the research I’ve done points to it being made in the same factories as Sorrento and packaged with a different label.
I couldn’t find anything as good as Sorrento with U.S. Foods labels, so that’s probably not an option. We have a local distributor here that carries a pretty private label cheese but won’t give me good pricing on it because they want me to buy Grande from them.