Hi everyone, this is my first time posting. I’ve been using these forums for a while now, and they’ve been incredibly helpful. My family has a tradition of making large batches of deer sausage every year. We cold smoke them and then dry age them by hanging them in the smokehouse for about six weeks.
Over the past two years, we’ve noticed an increase in mold growth on the casings while they hang. I’ve seen many posts here mentioning that "white hairy mold is okay," but in our case, the mold starts out white and then turns blue, green, or even brown. If not caught quickly, it seems to eat through the casing.
To combat this fungus, as soon as we notice it, we clean the casings to remove the mold and spray them with Potassium Sorbate. After a few applications, the mold slows down, but we’d feel much better if it didn’t grow at all. Checking and cleaning hundreds of sticks multiple times a week is a lot of work. There has to be a better way.
This year, we went a step further by thoroughly cleaning and pre-treating each stick with Potassium Sorbate before putting them into the smokehouse, but we still experienced mold growth.
The smokehouse is not climate-controlled. However, it is in a covered area that stays cool, doesn’t get wet from rain, and isn’t exposed to direct sunlight. It also has vents to allow airflow.
Any suggestions on how to prevent mold growth, thoughts on the mold in the pictures, or ideas for improving our process would be greatly appreciated.
Over the past two years, we’ve noticed an increase in mold growth on the casings while they hang. I’ve seen many posts here mentioning that "white hairy mold is okay," but in our case, the mold starts out white and then turns blue, green, or even brown. If not caught quickly, it seems to eat through the casing.
To combat this fungus, as soon as we notice it, we clean the casings to remove the mold and spray them with Potassium Sorbate. After a few applications, the mold slows down, but we’d feel much better if it didn’t grow at all. Checking and cleaning hundreds of sticks multiple times a week is a lot of work. There has to be a better way.
This year, we went a step further by thoroughly cleaning and pre-treating each stick with Potassium Sorbate before putting them into the smokehouse, but we still experienced mold growth.
The smokehouse is not climate-controlled. However, it is in a covered area that stays cool, doesn’t get wet from rain, and isn’t exposed to direct sunlight. It also has vents to allow airflow.
Any suggestions on how to prevent mold growth, thoughts on the mold in the pictures, or ideas for improving our process would be greatly appreciated.
