Is cheese ultra-processed?
Block cheese is group 3. Slices and spreads are not.
Most cheese is not. A block of cheddar is milk, salt, cultures and rennet, which makes it group 3, and that holds for almost every traditional cheese including blue, brie and parmesan.
Where the line falls
Processed cheese is a different product. Slices, spreads, squeezy cheese and most cheese sauces contain emulsifying salts, typically sodium citrate or phosphates, which is what lets them melt smoothly without splitting. That is a substance not used in domestic cooking, so it is group 4.
- Block, grated, sliced from a block: group 3.
- Individually wrapped slices, spreads, triangles, squeezy: group 4.
- Grated cheese in a bag often carries an anti-caking agent, usually potato starch, which is a group 2 ingredient rather than an additive, so it typically stays group 3.
- Vegan cheese alternatives are almost always group 4, being built from starches, oils and flavourings.
Working this out from a receipt is harder than from a packet, because a till prints about twenty characters of product name and no ingredients list. That is the problem Bagged exists to solve, and how a receipt is structured explains why it is the hard part.
Common questions
- Are cheese slices ultra-processed?
- Individually wrapped processed slices are, because of the emulsifying salts. Slices cut from a block are not.
- Is grated cheese ultra-processed?
- Usually not. The anti-caking agent is normally a starch, which is a culinary ingredient rather than an additive, so bagged grated cheese generally stays group 3.
One photo of a receipt answers this for your own shopping.
Bagged reads every line and reports what share of your food spend was ultra-processed, and which items it was.
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