Can you spot the ultraprocessed foods?

Take a virtual shopping trip to learn more about what's on grocery store shelves.

Yellow American Cheese
dairy-eggs/cheese
📊 NOVA 4🌾 Gluten-Free🌿 Organic✨ Seed Oil Free

Yellow American Cheese

Andrew & Everett
Available at Whole Foods
100
Calories
6g
Protein
1g
Sugars
350mg
Sodium
22
Ingredients

What You Should Know

You'd find this in the refrigerated cheese aisle or on top of deli counters — the familiar stack of yellow American slices that show up in grilled cheese sandwiches, burgers, and school lunches. Its nostalgic, comforting vibe hides industrial processing: added water, emulsifiers (sodium citrate) and colorings produce a very uniform, meltable texture and are typical hallmarks of ultra-processed cheese products.

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size: 1 oz
Servings per Container: 1
Calories100
% Daily Value*
Total Fat9g12%
Saturated Fat5g25%
Trans Fat0g
Cholesterol25mg8%
Sodium350mg15%
Total Carbohydrate2g1%
Total Sugars1g
Protein6g
* The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Ingredients

American, Cheese, (pasteurized, milk,, cheese, culture,, salt,, enzymes), Water, Cream, Sodium, Citrate, Salt, Organic, Fruit, And, Vegetable, Juice, Color, Paprika, Extract, Color..

Flagged Ingredients:

  • Sodium Citrate - Processed emulsifier
  • Paprika Extract Color - Artificial coloring
No EmulsifierNo Additive

Dietary Labels

This product is not vegan, is gluten-free, and is organic.

Ultra-Processing Assessment

NOVA Score:4 / 4

Ultra-Processed

Why this score?

Contains industrial ingredients (sodium citrate, added water, and colorings) and is formulated to achieve uniform meltability and shelf stability, which aligns with NOVA group 4 (ultra-processed foods).

Daily Ritual

Can you Spot Ultraprocessed Foods? Play our Supermarket Game

Take a virtual shopping trip to learn more about what's on grocery store shelves.

Shopping in the supermarket oil aisle

Others also viewed

Common Questions about Yellow American Cheese

Well, that depends on your definition of healthy! This cheese is high in protein, which can be great for a snack or adding to meals, but it does contain a fair amount of sodium and saturated fat. If you're looking for a tasty addition to your grilled cheese or burger, it fits the bill, but moderation is key.

Perfect For

back-to-school
game-day-prep
movie-night
meal-prep-sunday

Vibe:

nostalgicconvenientindulgentcomforting
$8.99
per package