Hi Folks…Recently took over an operating delco operation in the Columbia, SC area. I’m curious what everyone else is seeing price-wise on cheese. I buy Grande Whole Milk and Sorrento part skim, both pre-shredded. I then mix them 50/50.
Specific question is what has everyone else seen price-wise on your cheese prices for the last three months. For me, Grande has increased about $.17/lb and Sorrento is up $.23/lb over the three months since I took over here, yet Milk prices have fallen in the same time period.
Is this increase along whatever everyone else is experiencing, or a case of my supplier inching me up now that they have my business?
Thanks for any and all input! Awesome forum. Wish this existed when I was in the business 30 years ago.
Ask your supplier to tie your prices into the block market prices. They pay based upon the block market, so why shouldn’t you. Keep track of it through cheesereporter.com
I couldn’t begin to correlate what I saw on cheesereporter.com to the price I was paying, in any way shape or form. They list cheese prices by the barrel and block…and to be honest I don’t want to necessarily be an expert at cheese pricing, just wanted to know if anyone else as seeing an upward swing in pricing over the last three months. Logic tells me since milk is a major component in cheese and milk prices have been dropping, that cheese prices should be dropping, not increasing.
Many of us contract to pay a certain price over the bock market price. I pay 21 cents over the block market price. Some pay less, some pay more as volume and distance from manufacturing facility are big factors in pricing. In general terms, the price of cheese leads the price of milk, not the other way around. I know the logic would say otherwise but if you want to understand how the price of cheese will be trending in the near future, milk really isn’t a great indicator. My recent experience has been that cheese prices have been fairly steady over the last three months. Increases of 17 and 23 cents per pound do not seem warranted.
I don’t often see posts where people blend Grande with other cheeses. You pay such a premium for that brand that the folks who have drunk the koolaid don’t want to dilute it.
If you want to save a bunch of money have a look at some other choices for your blend. If you are mixing it you are not getting that “mouth feel” they make so much noise about anyway.
I have never been able to get US Food or Sysco to go to a contract over CME block but I do track where we are in relation to that index. Remember that any moves you see there will not show up in your pricing for 2-4 weeks depending on the stock levels at your supplier.