02/27/08 Dairy SOS

SOS sounds like a cry for help but when talking about cheese innovation SOS means slice on slice. Dairy Management Inc's Greg Miller said SOS is one example of how producers are helping build cheese sales by funding research to develop low fat cheese that will work for quick serve restaurants. MILLER "When you make a low fat or a fat free processed cheese, the slices tend to stick together and if you want to use that in a fast food restaurant, you can't do it because you can't individually wrap them all, they won't use it. And so we've got to come up with a way that allows a slice to sit on top of a slice and when that worker wants to peel it off and throw it on the hamburger, it's quick and easy for them to do." Lloyd Metzger, a scientist with the Midwest Dairy Foods Research Center and a South Dakota State professor says restaurants like Subway don't have a cheese slice to put on their low fat sandwiches. METZGER " We want to provide a piece of cheese that tastes the way it's supposed to, that can be manufactured in an economical system, and be able to put on a sandwich so we don't have to take the cheese off Jared's Subway sandwich anymore. Really be nice to drive some additional volume by being able to provide a cheese that can fit that need, we know the need is there." Metzger says the low fat cheese slice fits with the concept of meeting unmet consumer demand for dairy products. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott