Federal regulations require that pasteurized processed cheeses and cream cheeses contain at least 51% real cheese. The rest of the ingredients can range from water and salt to artificial colors and preservatives. For example, a cheese spread like Kraft’s Cheez Whiz may contain several strange-sounding ingredients, including whey, sodium phosphate, whey protein concentrate, butterfat, skim milk, salt, Worcestershire sauce, flour of mustard, lactic acid, sorbic acid, oleoresin of achiote and paprika. Whey is a by-product of cheese. When you add an enzyme to milk to make cheese and remove the curd that forms, the remaining liquid is whey. Sodium phosphate is an emulsifying agent: the FDA limits them to no more than 3% of the total weight. Lactic acid is an acidifying agent, produced by the fermentation of corn starch or beet sugar. Sorbic acid is a harmless common preservative. And the oleoresin of achiote and paprika are natural food colors.
More about processed cheeses:
Processed cheese was created in 1911 by Swiss inventor Walter Gerber. In 1916, American James L. Kraft received the first patent for his version.
In 1950, Kraft Foods sold the first sliced processed cheese.
Processed cheese can sit on the shelf or in the refrigerator for long periods without spoiling.