 | |
| Product type | Pasta and cheese |
|---|---|
| Owner | Kraft Heinz |
| Produced by | Kraft Foods |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1984 [1] [2] |
| Related brands | Kraft Dinner |
| Website | kraftheinz.com/velveeta |
Velveeta Shells & Cheese is a shell pasta and cheese sauce food product that debuted in the United States in 1984, as part of the Velveeta brand products. [1] [2] Its ingredients, texture, and flavor are very similar to macaroni and cheese. The product is a shelf-stable food. [3]
The product is prepared in original style, 2% milk style and in chipotle and jalapeño flavors. [4] The product prepared with 2% milk in the cheese sauce contains 50% less fat compared to the original product. The flavored varieties are packaged with separate packets, one with flavoring and one with the cheese sauce. [4] The jalapeño-flavored product has been described as being significantly spicy in flavor. [4] The chipotle-flavored product has been described as strong in flavor, per the chipotle, Mexican seasonings and cumin in the product. [4] The flavored varieties have the word "bold" on the packaging in all capitalized, bold lettering. [4] A large-shelled version, mini-shelled version, rotini spiral pasta version, a whole grain version, and a bacon version are also produced. A variant containing “mild peppers and picante sauce” labeled as Touch of Mexico was sold alongside the bacon variant as early as 1991, but is no longer available as of February 2020.
Velveeta Shells & Cheese is a shell pasta product prepared with enriched wheat flour and a milk-based cheese sauce. Additional primary ingredients in the cheese sauce include whey, water, whey protein concentrate and milk protein concentrate. The product contains under two percent of lactic acid, sodium alginate, sorbic acid, oleoresin, and other ingredients. [5]
| Nutritional value per 4 oz. | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 360 kcal (1,500 kJ) | ||||
46g | |||||
13g | |||||
15g | |||||
| |||||
Source: [6] | |||||
| †Percentages estimated using US recommendations for adults, [7] except for potassium, which is estimated based on expert recommendation from the National Academies. [8] | |||||
Per a single serving of the original product, Velveeta Shells & Cheese has 360 calories, 117 calories from fat, 13g total fat, 8g saturated fat, 30g cholesterol, 960 mg sodium, 46g total carbohydrate, 2g fiber and 15g protein. [6]
Kraft Foods introduced Velveeta cheese products in 1927 after acquiring the brand from The Velveeta Cheese Company. Kraft headquarters was previously located in Northfield, Illinois. Kraft Foods were made at around 160 manufacturing facilities around the world. Kraft Foods and Heinz merged in early July 2015, forming the new company The Kraft Heinz Company. [9]
As of January 2016, Velveeta Shells & Cheese is still marketed on a Kraft website. [10] On the Kraft Foods website, multiple recipes and cooking ideas for Velveeta Shells & Cheese are also posted. [10]
Prior to the corporate merger of Kraft Foods and Heinz, Kraft also marketed Velveeta Shells & Cheese through multiple television commercials and magazine advertisements. In March 2015, the product continued to be advertised on television in the United States, with statements referring to the product as "liquid gold." [11]
Velveeta Shells & Cheese is mass-produced and packaged in individual, single serving packages, [12] in boxes and in family size packages. [6]
In 2012, Kraft Foods received some questions from Consumer Reports about the packaging style for single-serving Velveeta Shells & Cheese, whereby the container is not full of product, and after the product is prepared, not much food is present relative to the size of the packaging. [13] A video denoting the Consumer Reports query showed a container that was only around half full after the single-serving container was cooked in a microwave oven. [13] A news report about the matter stated, "once you're done making it, look how little food is actually inside," in reference to the single-serving container. [13] Consumer Reports has referred to this type of packaging as a "packaging gotcha," via the downsizing of product volumes. [13] The news report stated that such types packaging is "deceptive", and implied that this is a tactic to mislead consumers into thinking they're getting more food than actually exists in the package. [13] The company responded stating that it "leaves room for water in the Velveeta Shells n' Cheese and that noodles expand." [13]
Pasta is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Pasta was originally only made with durum, although the definition has been expanded to include alternatives for a gluten-free diet, such as rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils. Pasta is believed to have developed independently in Italy and is a staple food of Italian cuisine, with evidence of Etruscans making pasta as early as 400 BCE in Italy.
Kraft Dinner in Canada, Kraft Mac & Cheese in the United States, Australia and New Zealand, Mac and Cheese in the United Kingdom and internationally, is a nonperishable, packaged macaroni and cheese mix. It is made by Kraft Foods Group and traditionally cardboard-boxed with dried macaroni pasta and a packet of processed cheese powder. It was introduced under the Kraft Dinner name simultaneously in both Canada and the U.S. in 1937. The brand is particularly popular with Canadians, who consume 55% more boxes per capita than Americans.
Macaroni and cheese is a dish of macaroni pasta and a cheese sauce, most commonly cheddar sauce.
Processed cheese is a product made from cheese mixed with an emulsifying agent. Additional ingredients, such as vegetable oils, unfermented dairy ingredients, salt, food coloring, or sugar may be included. As a result, many flavors, colors, and textures of processed cheese exist. Processed cheese typically contains around 50 to 60% cheese and 40 to 50% other ingredients.
Kraft Foods Group, Inc. was an American food manufacturing and processing conglomerate, split from Kraft Foods Inc. on October 1, 2012, and was headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. It became part of Kraft Heinz on July 2, 2015.
Cheez Whiz is a brand of processed cheese sauce and spread produced by Kraft Foods. It was developed by a team led by food scientist Edwin Traisman (1915–2007). It was first sold in 1952, and, with some changes in formulation, continues to be in production today.
Lunchables is an American brand of food and snacks manufactured by Kraft Heinz in Chicago, Illinois, and marketed under the Oscar Mayer brand. They were initially introduced in Seattle in 1988 before being released nationally in 1989. Many Lunchables products are produced in a Garland, Texas, facility, and are then distributed across the United States.
Provel is a white processed cheese prominent in St. Louis cuisine. A combination of cheddar, Swiss, provolone, and liquid smoke, Provel has a low melting point and a gooey texture and buttery flavor.
Kraft Singles is a brand of processed cheese product manufactured and sold by Kraft Heinz. Introduced in 1950, the individually wrapped "slices" are not really slices off a block, but formed separately in manufacturing.
Velveeta is a brand name for a processed cheese similar to American cheese. It was invented in 1918 by Emil Frey (1867–1951) of the Monroe Cheese Company in Monroe, New York. In 1923, The Velveeta Cheese Company was incorporated as a separate company. In 1925, it advertised two varieties, Swiss and American. The firm was purchased by Kraft Foods Inc. in 1927. Unlike Kraft Singles, which is real cheese, Velveeta does not count as real cheese due to reasons detailed below.
Cool Whip is an American brand of whipped topping manufactured by Kraft Heinz. It is used in North America as a topping for desserts, and in some no-bake pie recipes as a convenience food or ingredient that does not require physical whipping and can maintain its texture without melting over time.
American cheese is a type of processed cheese made from cheddar, Colby, or similar cheeses, in conjunction with sodium citrate, which permits the cheese to be pasteurized without its components separating. It is mild with a creamy and salty flavor, has a medium-firm consistency, and has a low melting point. It is typically yellow or white in color; yellow American cheese is seasoned and colored with annatto.
Easy Cheese is the trademark for a processed cheese spread product distributed by Mondelēz International. It is also commonly referred to by generic terms such as "spray cheese", "squirt cheese", "cheese in a can", and/or "cheese cans". Easy Cheese is packaged in a metal can filled with air covered with a plastic cap that reveals a straight, flexible nozzle where the cheese is extruded.
Wheat Thins is a brand of baked whole grain snack food crackers distributed in the United States and Canada by Mondelez International. The product is also available in Australia through wholesaler USA Foods. Vegetable Thins, Oat Thins, Pita Thins, and Rice Thins, which are all spinoffs of Wheat Thins, are available in Canada and some regions of the United States. Wheat Thins themselves come in many flavors and varieties. Nabisco first introduced the product in 1947.
Kraft Foods Inc. was a multinational confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It marketed many brands in more than 170 countries. Twelve of its brands annually earned more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oreo, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, and Tang. Forty of its brands were at least a century old.
Better Cheddars is a brand of baked cheese crackers that are prepared using cheddar cheese as a main ingredient. Better Cheddars are manufactured by Nabisco, a subsidiary of Mondelēz International. In the United States, Better Cheddars are marketed under the "Flavor Originals" trademark, which also includes the Chicken in a Biskit brand. Better Cheddars were first introduced by Nabisco in February 1981. Various flavors of the cracker have been purveyed to consumers.
Clam dip is a dipping sauce and condiment prepared with clams, sour cream or cream cheese, and seasonings as primary ingredients. Various additional ingredients can be used. It is usually served chilled, although it is sometimes served hot or at room temperature. It is used as a dip for potato chips, crackers, bread, and crudités. Commercial varieties of clam dip are mass-produced by some companies and marketed to consumers in grocery stores and supermarkets.
The Kraft Heinz Company (KHC), commonly known as Kraft Heinz, is an American multinational food company formed by the merger of Kraft Foods and H.J. Heinz Company co-headquartered in Chicago and Pittsburgh. Kraft Heinz is the third-largest food and beverage company in North America and the fifth-largest in the world with over $26.0 billion in annual sales as of 2021.
Cheese sauce is a sauce made with cheese or processed cheese as a primary ingredient. Sometimes dried cheese or cheese powder is used. Several varieties exist and it has many various culinary uses. Mass-produced commercial cheese sauces are also made by various companies, in both liquid and dry forms. These prepared sauces are used by consumers and restaurants, and commercial formulations are used in the production of various prepared foods, such as macaroni and cheese mixes and frozen meals.
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