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%
48%
60%
Materials
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Cheese
Gloves
Grater
Plastic Bags
Water + Soap
Drawer
Camera
Controlling My Experiment
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Grated all the cheeses
Kept them all in plastic bags
Washed grater after each turn
Wore gloves for every different cheese
Procedure
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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
s
c
2
o
r 1.5
e
1
Control
0.5
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
Time (Days)
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
Blue cheese and brie are made of mouldy
cheese. Only different types of mould were
scored and none was found
21
Conclusions
• My hypothesis was wrong
• The mould grows differently on different cheese
• Does not matter on the moisture percentage except for parmesan
Further Inquiries
 Why did the mould on the fresh mozzarella go away?
 How long will it take until parmesan grows any moulds?
 Will brie and blue cheese ever grow any different types of moulds?
 How many other moulds grow on cheese?
 Why do some moulds take out all the air from a bag?