Can you spot the difference between these two packages of cheese slices?
They have the same UPC code, the same look, and probably the same taste faintly reminiscent of a product once called american cheese.
The one on the right is called “Pasteurized Process Cheese Food” and is currently being phased out in favor of the item on the left called “American Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product.” So, big deal, they changed the name, you say. The name change had to be made because the ingredients no longer met the federal definition (the standard of identity) for “pasteurized process cheese food.”
*MOUSE PRINT:
Uncle Sam has a very specific recipe for mandatory and optional ingredients in “pasteurized process cheese food.”  In particular, this product must be a minimum of 51% cheese (isn’t that reassuring), and no more than 44% moisture.
In the early 2000s, Kraft Singles starting using “milk protein concentrate” in its products and that was not allowed by the federal recipe. Rather than change their recipe, Kraft renamed it to “american pasteurized prepared cheese product.” [See second story here.] There is no federal standard of identity for such a product.
Other brands, including store brands, have been slow to change, but most have now eliminated “cheese food” from their labels.
So what do you get in the new products? From the labels, it is not even clear if it contains american cheese anymore, or whether it is at least 51% cheese. What it does have is 50% more cholesterol than before, and almost 40% more salt.
And, to add insult to injury, the new Stop & Shop product, while still a pound, only weighs 453 grams instead of the old 454. How cheesy can you get?
Totes is synonymous with umbrellas and other foul weather gear.
