Cheese case maintenance should be the first thing the opening monger does in the morning, and the last thing the closing monger does before turning the lights out in the case. But proper cheese care and maintenance goes beyond just straightening signs and glass wrapping - cheese is a living, breathing, gastronomic miracle that should be treated with respect! Keep reading to learn some tips from the Formaticum team on how to keep your cut-to-order cheese happy and healthy.
1. Rotate your cheeses properly to ensure they are sold in a timely manner. Don't over-order in certain categories, and be careful when putting out several cheeses of the same style so that they don't compete with each other in the case and prolong the time they spend on display in plastic wrap. Use a Date Log to keep track of when wheels were first opened, and how long they've spent in the case, and a Push/Pin list can help your mongers know which cheeses to focus on to move them more quickly if they've been in the case a bit too long. Use your weekly case cleaning as an opportunity to reset the display and move cheeses to the front that you need to sell more quickly.
2. Consider wrapping larger display pieces or back stock in Formaticum cheese paper instead of plastic wrap. Plastic wrap will suffocate the cheese and impart off flavors, and the longer it stays in contact with the cheese, the more intense the effects will be. Our One-Ply Roll is perfect for wrapping half and quarter wheels, and is also available in 20" so that you can store even your largest pieces, like 1/8th and even quarter wheels of Gruyère and Comté.
3. Cheese should be faced and rewrapped daily. Remember, customers eat with their eyes first! Any visible mold on the face of the cheese may deter your customer from ordering. Cheesemongers and microbiologists agree - when it comes to surface mold on harder cheeses, it is both safe and recommended to gently scrape the surface to clean the mold, or cut off a bit of the affected side before rewrapping or cutting for a customer. Plus, wrapping cheese in Formaticum cheese paper will slow surface mold growth and help preserve the cheese longer than plastic wrap.
4. Different cheeses require different types of wrapping materials! Bloomy-rinds and geotrichum rinds require more oxygen to thrive, making our plant-based and plastic-free Cellophane an ideal material to keep them happy in a full serve or grab and go case. One-Ply and Two-Ply sheets are versatile and great for all cheese styles, while fresh and blue cheeses are best kept in sturdier materials like Reusable Wrap, Super Wax, and Brown Alios, which are greaseproof and will prevent leakage.
5. Provide the best possible experience for your customers by wrapping their cheese in Formaticum paper. This will help to preserve the flavor they loved at the counter and keep the cheese fresh in their fridge for as long as possible. Consider offering retail products like Classic or Reusable Cheese Storage Bags so that your customers can have professional-quality cheese storage in their own homes!
The proof is in the paper. Honor the cheesemakers, save your cheese - with Formaticum cheese storage solutions. Order products for next business day shipping at wholesale.formaticum.com and email wholesale@formaticum.com with any questions.