A 15-year-old cheddar made in Wisconsin, possibly the most mature cheese for sale in the country, is selling well despite the $50-per-pound price tag, its producer said Saturday.The cheddar began as part of a gigantic batch that weighed 5,200 pounds. The Hooks let much of the batch age, and sold large chunks at the 10- and 12-year marks. But they felt it was aging so flavorfully that they saved 1,200 pounds to let it mature a few years longer, Hook said."Cheese making is an art form," Brian Morello, who bought a ¾-pound hunk of the vintage cheddar at Larry's Market in Milwaukee, told the Journal Sentinel. "I consider my purchase to be a form of cheese philanthropy. For $50, I supported the arts and got a great piece of cheese."
This story relates to the concept of scarcity and to people thinking at the margin. First of all, the cheese is one of the oldest (if not the oldest) batch of cheddar available in America; because it is so rare for cheddar to last so long and maintain good taste, it is an extremely scarce item. For this reason it has a significantly greater value to cheese-lovers than to the typical cheddar that one can buy from his or her local deli.
Also, the marginal benefit of this cheese is greater than that of typical cheddar. So much greater, in fact, that paying $50 a pound is a reasonable marginal cost for it. Would I buy a pound? Probably not, but that's only because I can't spend $50 on much of anything. However, if I had the chance I could see myself buying a quarter pound for $12.50 just to try this scarce, delicious cheese.
Its interesting to see what is important to people. So often in this country we go for the cheapest food instead of the highest quality food. What would be the opportunity cost in this situation? Would you choose to give up your daily latte fix for a week to pay for the cheese? Or would the money come from a different pool, perhaps from the money you would normally go to the movies with. Also the cheese industry is so different here in the US than other countries, because the regulations are in favor of industrial production of cheese instead of artesian production. It is much easier to get licensed as a maker of processed cheese-wiz like product than a truly great tasting goat cheese from a small herd. Because good cheese is scare here of course it is going to be expensive. Its that simple supply and demand curve and in recent years more and more people are taking the step to say no to velveeta and yes to the $50 cheddar!
ReplyDeleteHey, if the demand is there.. why not go for it? Now if the demand gets a little too high, who knows? It may go up to $100 per pound or or $50 per half pound. Amazing what one can sell if people want it.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how much it would cost to take a single bite? I might be willing to pay a few dollars to taste a food so rare i won't have the chance to do so again. A lot of other products seem to escalate in value in the same manner because over time they become more and more scarce, like an old baseball card,a bottle of wine or a rare coin. Sometimes it could be worth spending a little extra money ( or maybe a lot)to have the opportunity to obtain something rare that you value.
ReplyDeleteI think it is ludicrous that someone would spend that much money cheese. 50 dollars for a pound of cheese that is basically past it's due date doesnt really have any marginal benefits in my personal opinion.
ReplyDeleteMike, there isn't a due date. Cheese can last for decades if it's properly taken care of, and it's like wine in the sense that it becomes more flavorful with age.
ReplyDeleteI'd just like to say that we found cheese in our refrigerator that was 18 years old. I win!
ReplyDeleteI had some cheddar cheese for breakfast this morning--I am sure glad it wasn't that expensive. But I was willing to pay for that package of cheese (a demand) and it was supplied to me. This special cheddar cheese has a higher price, too high for me, so the demand for it decreased so that it does not include me anymore. E,T
ReplyDeleteThis reminds me of a news story I saw a while ago for this gigantic truffle they found in or near Italy. It sold for over $300,000. I found a little bit of information talking about how in demand they are:
ReplyDelete"White and black truffles are rare and highly sought after as food. Truffle hunting can be extremely lucrative, as the prized delicacies can be priced at around $11,000 a kilo. (2.2 pounds.)
Dogs are specially trained to hunt the truffles and locate them in the wild. Rocco, an Italian mutt, found the 3.3 pound white truffle near Pisa, Italy at the base of a tree and abut 2.5 feet underground."
I think both examples are extremely good examples of the concept of scarcity. E,T.
Crazy what some people spend their money sometimes. I am curious whether this cheese even tastes good. Im not sure i would spend 50 dollars on a pound though. I once saw a dateline test where they blindfolded people and with various items had them taste test them and see which they thought was th emost expensive and best kind to get and they almost never picked the most expensive ones as the best tasting.
ReplyDeleteSometimes the trade-off is worth it. If you really like cheese, for example, than the opportunity cost that comes from buying $50/pound cheese is a lot lower in comparison to what it would be for a skeptic who's happy with settling for Kraft. The cost of the tradeoff simply depends upon the person making the decision and what their priorities are.
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