Kraft Singles Are Ditching Artificial Preservatives

By Sam Lewis

Food maker’s most popular cheese varieties will no longer include artificial preservatives as food labels continue to face more and more criticism

In the latest move by a major food manufacturer to tweak its products’ ingredients list, Kraft Foods has made the call to remove artificial preservatives from two of its most popular products. The change will affect the company’s full-fat American and White American Singles varieties, which Kraft states are a majority of the brand’s sales.

The move comes as more and more American consumers are paying closer attention to what they purchase, trying to eat foods they feel are more natural. This shift has led many food manufacturers to change their recipes. Last week, Subway said it would be removing azodicarbonamide — an approved food additive found in many products — from its bread recipe after Vani Hari, a food blogger, began a petition stating the ingredient was a component used in creating yoga mats.

For Kraft, Sorbic acid is being taken out of the Singles’ recipe, being replaced natamycin, which Kraft claims is a “natural mold inhibitor.” Kraft sees the opportunity to label its cheese products as “free of artificial preservatives” or “natural” as a selling point. “Consumers are looking for those less artificial cues and messages,” say Gavin Schmidt, manager of cheese research and development at Kraft. “Those messages are more meaningful to consumers than they have been in the past.”

Later this month, the company will air TV commercials boasting Kraft Singles as a product that “begins with milk” and are “made with no artificial preservatives.” The new Kraft Singles have already hit grocers’ aisles in the last few weeks, with the packaging showing off a red circle stamped on the package saying the product has no artificial preservatives or flavors. According to Kraft, artificial flavors have not been used in its Singles for years, but has now decided to promote that feature of the cheese product.

According to Schmidt, the change from artificial preservatives to being free of them took about five years. Kraft wanted to perfect the recipe, ensuring taste and shelf life remained identical before releasing the product.  Kraft is currently testing the removal from artificial preservatives from its other Kraft Singles varieties, such as other full-fat varieties, fat free, and the 2 percent milk line, but Schmidt says removing artificial preservatives from the most popular lines was the company’s first priority.

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