I was at Trader Joe's again, and I bought this cheese alternative. Being hungry out of my mind, the thought to check the ingredients never crossed it. Now I, a vegan, am stuck with having to eat a "cheese alternative" that contains the following (lest a portion of my finite grocery budget be spent in vain):
- Almond base
- Filtered water
- Crushed organic almonds
- Casein
- Milk protein
- Expeller pressed canola oil
- Modified potato starch
- Natural Parmesan cheese flavor (adds a trivial amount of lactose)
- Parmesan cheese
- Pasteurized milk
- Cheese cultures
- Salt
- Enzyme
- Water
- Salt
- Xanthan gum
- Vegetable glycerin
- Sodium phosphate
- Sea salt
- Citric acid
- Psyllium husk (a plant fiber)
- Calcium phosphate
My question is this: What is the purpose of a cheese substitute that contains dairy? It's not suitable for people allergic to or otherwise averse to dairy Apparently it is, to an extent. So what's the thought process behind the development and release of this product?
Best Answer
Lactose intolerance (which is different from a milk allergy, which is a smaller group) comes in varying degrees, so this may be useful for people who can have a bit of lactose (who can process casein fine).
For example, many lactose intolerant people (who often avoid dairy) can handle non-dairy creamer fine (and varying amounts of cheese), even though it has casein. Many cheese substitutes still do use casein.
The parmesan adds glutemates to the mix, while casein gives a lot of structural properties to cheese (like melting ability for real cheese).