MARKETING.
Neufchâtel, cream, and pimiento-cream cheeses are sold by the box. The wholesale price of a cheese is usually 2 or 3 cents less than the retail price. Cream cheese retails for about 15 cents a package, Neufchâtel for 7 cents, and pimiento cream at 15 cents a jar.
RETURNS FROM 100 POUNDS OF MILK.
Upon the basis of the calculated cost of manufacturing and at current prices for the cheese, the following returns should be obtained per 100 pounds of 4 per cent milk, viz, for cream cheese $9, for Neufchâtel $8.40, and for pimiento cream $8.85. After subtracting the estimated cost of making the cheese from 4 per cent milk, valued at $2.40 a hundredweight, there should be a net profit of $6.14 for cream cheese, $6.22 for Neufchâtel, and $4.45 for pimiento cream. Rent and cost of marketing are not considered.
POSSIBILITIES.
The desirability of making these varieties of cheese upon a small scale and successfully marketing them depends upon the skill of the maker and his ability to obtain a direct and ready market for his product. When cheese is made and delivered once or twice a week, a dairyman is in far better position to serve the public by selling a perfectly fresh product than the larger manufacturers, working at a distance, who are obliged to dispose of their cheese several days after it is made, and who must pay the additional expense of boxing and shipping. If the cheese is marketed directly upon a small scale it is not necessary to put it into the flat boxes, as is the case if it is handled commercially. The cheeses may be disposed of satisfactorily by placing them in one large box and piling one cheese upon another. When cheese of this type is delivered upon a milk route the use of a special box provided with two compartments, one for ice and the other for cheese, is advisable during the warm periods of the year. Pimiento-cream cheese, because of its keeping quality, is particularly adaptable to small-scale operations. When sold in glass jars it is sold as readily as the product of the larger manufacturers. With a direct outlet, arrangements may be made to use the jars again and thereby reduce the cost of marketing.
When suitably situated it should be practicable for many dairymen to supply cheese to a neighboring town at good prices for their milk and extra trouble. It should be especially feasible for the milk dealer to dispose of his surplus milk in the form of cheese; in fact, in some cases for some of these kinds of soft cheese he would receive as much as or more than for the milk. By beginning in a small way the milk dealer should be able to develop a trade in fancy cheeses, such as cottage, Neufchâtel, cream, and pimiento cream, and by selling direct to the consumer he could compete successfully with larger manufacturers.
KEEPING QUALITIES OF THE CHEESE.
When wrapped in foil and put into a cold place immediately after making, cream and Neufchâtel cheeses should keep from 6 to 12 days without developing objectionable flavors; usually cream cheese seems to keep somewhat better than Neufchâtel. If pimiento-cream cheese is placed in the customary jars and held at 50° F. or below, it should be still palatable at the end of a month. These products develop a sourish taste rather quickly when held at a high temperature. The temperature, therefore, is by far the most important factor concerned in regulating the keeping qualities of the cheese. There may be considerable variation in both the salt and water content of the cheese without causing much deterioration.