Independent Cheese Mould Experiment Purpose To determine what

Independent Cheese Mould Experiment Purpose To determine what type of grated cheese grows the most moulds. Variables Different types of grated cheese. By Nelli Larjava

Hypothesis If cheese has a lot of moisture then it will grow the most mould because mould needs moisture to grow. Moisture % in cheese Parmesan Cheddar Edam Blue Brie Mozzarella Fresh Mozzarella 30% 39% 40% 42% 48% 60% Materials • • Cheese Gloves Grater Plastic Bags Water + Soap Drawer Camera

Controlling My Experiment • • Grated all the cheeses Kept them all in plastic bags Washed grater after each turn Wore gloves for every different cheese

Procedure • • Grate cheese Wear and change gloves ( To prevent mould spread by touching with hands) Wash grater ( To prevent mould spread between different types of cheese) Grate other cheeses ( Mouldy ones last) Place them in plastic bags Place in dark drawer Take pictures every 3 days Score daily 1 -3

Mould Growth by Time in Different Types of Cheese 3. 5 3 fresh Mozz. Reg. Mozz Brie Blue cheese Edam Cheddar Parmesan 2. 5 score 2 1. 5 1 Control 0. 5 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Score 0 = no mould growth Score 1 = less than 25% covered in moulds Score 2 = 50 % covered in moulds Score 3 =50% to 100% covered in moulds 8 9 10 11 12 Time (Days) 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Blue cheese and brie are made of mouldy cheese. Only different types of mould were scored and none was found 21

Day 1

Da y 3

Da y 6

Da y 1 2

Da y 15

Da y 2 1

Conclusions • My hypothesis was wrong • The mould grows differently on different cheese • Does not matter on the moisture percentage except for parmesan

Further Inquiries v Why did the mould on the fresh mozzarella go away? v How long will it take until parmesan grows any moulds? v Will brie and blue cheese ever grow any different types of moulds? v How many other moulds grow on cheese? v Why do some moulds take out all the air from a bag?