Ferdinand’s is known for its classic sharp cheddar cheese in a tin and its delicious ice cream, but what is so special about it? It all comes down to the history, the culture and the flavor.
Ferdinand’s is a family-friendly local creamery that produces its own cheese and ice cream. They have 16 flavors of ice cream and 10 flavors of cheese.
Ferdinand’s Ice Cream Shoppe first opened its doors on Sept. 24, 1948, in Troy Hall. However, the cheese has been produced by students since the 1930’s. During that time, the WSU creamery began trying different ways to store cheese. Because plastic was not widely used at the time and wax would crack and spoil the cheese, the creamery needed a new way of storage.
In the 1940s, WSU was funded by the federal government and the American Can Company to figure out how to keep cheese in tin cans. Researcher Dr. N. S. Golding discovered a specific bacterial culture that, when added to the cheese, helps prevent the formation of carbon dioxide in the can, which could cause it to explode. Bacterial culture is the method of creating bacteria in a controlled environment.
Because of this development, Golding’s last name was used and the famous term, “Cougar Gold” was coined. It was not until 1992 that Ferdinand’s moved to the Food Quality Building, where it currently sits.
The creamery doesn’t receive any state funding through taxpayer dollars, meaning it is entirely self-funded. It generates its own revenue, which is used to pay employees, cover operational expenses and make upgrades as necessary. But what gives Cougar Gold its flavor?
“The cheese gets its unique flavor from being aged for so long, unlike other cheeses,” said junior Gage Linzbach who has worked in the creamery and production floor of Ferdinand’s for over two years.
Cougar Gold is aged in the can for at least one year, which helps give it a crumbly texture and enrich the sharp, tangier taste, he said.
“One thing that people might not know is that we source all of our milk locally,” said junior Kaden Davis, who also works on the production floor.
With around 60 students running the creamery, they can produce around a quarter of a million cases of cheese a year and they sell out every year.
Ferdinand’s and the WSU Creamery use a portion of their revenue to help support food science students and in 2008, the WSU Creamery Development Fund was created to offer financial assistance to food science students.
While there is a lot that goes into making a can of Cougar Gold cheese, the most important parts are the culture, the aging process and the local ingredients.
