Ad of the Week: Sargento Natural Cheeses

Apparently, Sargento is all about the cheese, and as such, makes a superior product based on their commitment to producing an "all-natural" cheese.

I don't know if this is the intent, but what I am getting from their commercial is that you can either buy some form of processed cheese product (I'm thinking Velveeta), or their product, which is natural cheese. Well, anyone with half a brain should realize that any actual cheese is going to be better than that processed crap stuff.

But what about comparing like to like? Here is what I found when I looked at the ingredients of Sargento's shredded Mild Cheddar cheese and the generic brand available at my local grocery store:

Sargento: Cheddar cheese [pasteurized milk, cheese culture, salt, enzymes, annatto (vegetable color)], potato starch and powdered cellulose (to prevent caking), natamycin (a natural mold prohibitor).

Store Brand: Pasteurized milk, cheese culture, salt, enzymes and annatto (vegetable color), potato starch and powdered cellulose added to prevent caking, natamycin (a natural mold inhibitor). Contains milk.*

*That was actually below the ingredients list, but because it was there I included it here.

That pretty much says it all, doesn't it? The only difference I see here is that Sargento combines the first set of ingredients under the "cheddar cheese" umbrella, while the store brand lists them as separate ingredients.

Now I don't know how either of these ingredient lists would stack up against an artisanal cheddar I might find at Pastoral, but I do know there is no difference whatsoever between Sargento and the store brand.

And at my store, an 8-ounce package of Sargento costs $3.79. The store brand sells 3 for $6.00.