Frederic Melton
Government cheese was provided to welfare beneficiaries, food stamp recipients, and the elderly receiving social security in the United States. It was also distributed to food banks, churches, and schools. Government cheese is a commodity cheese that was controlled by the US federal government from World War II to the early 1980s. It was created to maintain the price of dairy when dairy industry subsidies artificially increased the quantity of milk supplied, creating a surplus of milk that was then converted into cheese. Government cheese is made from a variety of cheeses, including cheddar, Colby, cheese curd, or granular cheese.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Type of cheese | Pasteurized process American cheese |
| Ingredients | Cheddar cheese, Colby cheese, cheese curd, or granular cheese |
| Other ingredients | Emulsifiers and other ingredients specified in the standard of identity |
| Colour | Pale orange |
| Weight | Distributed in 5-pound blocks |
| Smell | Pungent |
| Taste | Somewhere between Velveeta and American cheese |
| Origin | Midwest |
| Producers | Same people who make large format vat-cheddars for supermarkets |
| Distribution | To welfare beneficiaries, Food Stamp recipients, the elderly receiving Social Security, food banks, churches, military kitchens, schools, and victims of natural disasters |
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What You'll Learn
- Government cheese was provided to welfare beneficiaries, food stamp recipients, the elderly, food banks and churches
- Government cheese is made from a variety of cheeses, including cheddar, colby, cheese curd and granular cheese
- Government cheese was created to maintain the price of dairy when dairy industry subsidies artificially increased the quantity of milk supplied
- Government cheese was distributed during a time of volatile milk production in the 1980s recession
- Government cheese was nominally removed in the 1990s when the dairy market stabilised
Government cheese was provided to welfare beneficiaries, food stamp recipients, the elderly, food banks and churches
Government cheese was provided through the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program to recipients of welfare, food stamps, and Social Security, at no cost to them. It was nominally removed in the 1990s when the dairy market stabilized. Government cheese is "pasteurized process American cheese", a term with a standard of identity. It is produced from a variety of cheeses (Cheddar cheese, Colby cheese, cheese curd, or granular cheese), made meltable using emulsifiers and blended. Other ingredients specified in the standard of identity may be used.
Government cheese was often from food surpluses stockpiled by the government as part of milk price supports. Some government cheese was made of kosher products. The cheese product is also distributed to victims of a natural disaster following a state of emergency declaration.
Government cheese was distributed in the early 1980s and was described as having a pungent smell and a pale orange colour. It was made from actual milk, not oil, and was usually made for surplus sale by the same people who make large format vat-cheddars for supermarkets.
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Government cheese is made from a variety of cheeses, including cheddar, colby, cheese curd and granular cheese
Government cheese was nominally removed in the 1990s when the dairy market stabilized. However, it became an important topic for the press in the 1980s, when the press learned about the milk products being stockpiled by the government as part of milk price supports. During this time, President Ronald Reagan's administration cut the budget on the US federal food stamp program, and millions of Americans felt food insecurity.
The cheese was produced with federal funds and distributed by a federal program during a time of volatile milk production in the 1980s recession. It is described as having a pungent smell and a pale orange colour, and its flavour was said to be somewhere between Velveeta and American cheese. Government cheese is often made in large format vats, usually for surplus sale by the same manufacturers who make supermarket cheddar.
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Government cheese was created to maintain the price of dairy when dairy industry subsidies artificially increased the quantity of milk supplied
Government cheese was created to maintain the price of dairy when dairy industry subsidies artificially increased the quantities of milk supplied. It was a commodity cheese that was controlled by the US federal government from World War II to the early 1980s. Government cheese was provided through the Temporary Emergency Food Assistance Program to recipients of welfare, food stamps, and Social Security, at no cost to them. It was also distributed to food banks and churches.
Government cheese was made from a variety of cheeses, including Cheddar, Colby, cheese curd, or granular cheese. It was produced from federal funds and was often made from food surpluses stockpiled by the government as part of milk price supports. The cheese was processed and made meltable using emulsifiers and blended with other ingredients. It was described as having a pungent smell and a pale orange colour.
During the 1980s, government cheese became an important topic for the press as they learned about the milk products being stored across the nation while millions of Americans experienced food insecurity. At the same time, President Ronald Reagan's administration cut the budget for the federal food stamp program. Government cheese was nominally removed in the 1990s when the dairy market stabilised.
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Government cheese was distributed during a time of volatile milk production in the 1980s recession
The cheese was created to maintain the price of dairy when dairy industry subsidies artificially increased the supply of milk, creating a surplus that was then converted into cheese, butter, or powdered milk. Government cheese was often made from food surpluses stockpiled by the government as part of milk price supports. Some of the cheese was made of kosher products.
Government cheese is "pasteurized process American cheese", a term with a standard of identity. It is produced from a variety of cheeses (Cheddar, Colby, cheese curd, or granular cheese), made meltable using emulsifiers and blended. It has also been described as somewhere between Velveeta and American cheese. It is large-format vat-cheddar, usually made for surplus sale by the same people who make the same large-format vat-cheddars for sale in the supermarket. Most of it comes from the Midwest.
Government cheese was nominally removed in the 1990s when the dairy market stabilized.
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Government cheese was nominally removed in the 1990s when the dairy market stabilised
Government cheese was created to maintain the price of dairy when dairy industry subsidies artificially increased the quantity of milk supplied, creating a surplus of milk that was then converted into cheese, butter, or powdered milk. The cheese was often from food surpluses stockpiled by the government as part of milk price supports.
Government cheese is "pasteurized process American cheese", a term with a standard of identity. It is produced from a variety of cheese (Cheddar cheese, Colby cheese, cheese curd, or granular cheese), made meltable using emulsifiers and blended. Other ingredients specified in the standard of identity may be used. It has a distinct orange colour and a pungent smell.
Government cheese was distributed in monthly, 32-ounce blocks, with generic product labelling and packaging. It has become a symbol for American innovation and industrialisation, but the nutritional value of the cheese has been in question. It has been argued that people in poverty, such as those entitled to government cheese, are more likely to become obese.
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Frequently asked questions
Government cheese is processed cheese provided to welfare beneficiaries, Food Stamp recipients, and the elderly receiving Social Security in the United States, as well as to food banks and churches.
Government cheese is made from a variety of cheeses, including Cheddar cheese, Colby cheese, cheese curd, or granular cheese. It is made meltable using emulsifiers and blended.
Government cheese has been described as tasting somewhere between Velveeta and American cheese.
