Government Cheese

[Bearcarver]

They were giving it away in my area, during the 80s when manufacturing in Pa really got hammered.
I was laid off a couple times, but would have been embarrassed to get it, when there were peeps that needed it more than we did. Saw a lot of big fancy cars parked there though.


Bear

[1Cavman]

The only government cheese I ever ate came in a C-Ration can. I believe it was white and had some crackers with it.

[Bearcarver]

The only government cheese I ever ate came in a C-Ration can. I believe it was white and had some crackers with it.

LOL----And it was over 35 years old!!!


Bear

[Mark R]

I still think it's Velveeta in a can!
That's what Mom tol me.

[RowdyRay]

The gubmint cheese I have seen was made by land o lakes . It is labeled American cheese and a quality one (if there is such a thing) at that. My mother in law gets a box of stuff from the senior citizens center every so often. She gives most of the cheese to us as the hunk she gets is like 4x4 x12". Lol.

My grandmother got it from the senior citizens center too, and gave me her excess. That's how we got it.

You could be right. It's been many years since I've bought any. Believe Land O Lakes is still making it. There was one we bought as a log and another that was packaged as a log, but sliced. Bongard's may have been the slices. Both were just like the guberment stuff, not like Velveeta.

While searching, I came across this. Since many of us are "do it yourselfers". Wonder if I could smoke it? Lol.

http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2013/0...erican-cheese/

[eDJ]

Re:

Thanks everbody for yur lowdown's on that Giverment Cheese.

I'd like to get the Dairy States together with Larry the Cable Guy to make it available again. If anybody could "get er done"......

It might just put some wiggle back in the Piggly Wiggley !

[curious aardvark]

edj - that soulnds like one helluva grilled cheese sarnie !

(can we have the multi quote button back ken - pretty please ? It's the bit I miss the most)

Used to get a powdered fizzy orange drink in germany when I was a kid - don't think I've ever seen it in the uk. Had some other flavours as well but orange was pretty much the only one most people could stomach.
And we did get some powdered 'grape' flavoured drink from the american px in rhiendalen - absolutely revolting !
The peanut butter was good though and I used to love crackerjack :-)

But then maybe it was in the uk when i was living in germany in the 70s and early 80s - so who knows :-)

[Bearcarver]

edj - that soulnds like one helluva grilled cheese sarnie !

(can we have the multi quote button back ken - pretty please ? It's the bit I miss the most)

Used to get a powdered fizzy orange drink in germany when I was a kid - don't think I've ever seen it in the uk. Had some other flavours as well but orange was pretty much the only one most people could stomach.
And we did get some powdered 'grape' flavoured drink from the american px in rhiendalen - absolutely revolting !
The peanut butter was good though and I used to love crackerjack :-)

But then maybe it was in the uk when i was living in germany in the 70s and early 80s - so who knows :-)

LOL---I used to love those powdered fizzy drink mixes in the paper packets, when I was a kid.

The Lime, or maybe it was Lemon-lime was to sour for me. Made me pucker!!!

Bear

[eDJ]

Re:

Is this what you guys remember ?

Youtube video of "Fizzies" 1950's TV Commercial.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ts6P1LJ5q_4

[Mark R]

http://www.hgjones.org/government-cheese/
When cutting into a block of government cheese, you never really knew what type of cheese you were eating. It was processed using leftover bits of Colby, cheddar, cheese curd, or granular cheese mixed with emulsifiers to give it a blocky shape. The taste and smell can only be described as a cross between very low-grade American cheese, a generic Velveeta knockoff, and a somewhat rancid cheddar. It was like biting into a cheese made from rotten socks. Once the dairy program was pulled and the food stamp program switched over to Link cards, Government Cheese was taken off the market.

[eDJ]

Re:

Wow ! Mark, that horrible.

I hear these people speaking of the stuff with a sense of nostalgia
and it makes me wonder if they even knew.

It was processed using leftover bits of Colby, cheddar, cheese curd, or granular cheese mixed with emulsifiers to give it a blocky shape.

This almost sounds like that "Meat Glue" discussion. Cheese Glue now ?

But I guess the Po' folks didn't know and thank God it didn't have Agent Orange in it. I knew one kid I worked with who grew up poor but got into the military at the right time, got a trade and became successful.
He used to talk about feeding his dog saying that when he opened a can of ALPO, for some reason or another he didn't know whether give it all to the dog or share it with him. He thought it had to do with eating too many MRE's. I just bit my tongue to keep from saying anything, as I figured his Mom was feeding it to him as a little kid when he was clueless about what he was eating.

[Bearcarver]

Is this what you guys remember ?

Youtube video of "Fizzies" 1950's TV Commercial.

Yup, that was the tablet form----There was also a paper packet with the granules in it, a lot like what they called "Lick-um-aid" (sp?).


Bear

[curious aardvark]

not that brand but same kind of deal.
used to get them in multi packs.

I've actually got some highstrength vitamin c tablets in the cupboard that make pretty much the same off-orange flavour fizzy drink. Tend to hit them when I even think I might havea cold coming that and the echinacea seesm to keep moist things at bay :-)

But they defintiely haven't improved the flavouring any

Yeah that guvmint cheese sounds exactly like i expected. But hey, anyone who eats commercially produced sasauge really shouldn't worry about eating that kind of cheese :-)

[Blue Dog BBQ]

When I was a kid we were poor and we got gobment cheese and it was good what I remember it was cheddar cheese. it was hard and you could crumble it. What I remember it wasn't as bad as some are saying. and if I could get some now I would without a second thought. But I was a kid I thought purple flavored Kool-Aid was the best drink ever.

[FireFighter431]

We were poor when I was growin up and we did receive the "commodities" too the cheese was the best of the lot, sort of like velveeta but not quite as soft, but soft nonetheless. I actually really like the cheese, like already mentioned, it made awesome grilled ham n cheese sandwiches, and we ate a chit load of them. Also was great on a cheese burger, mom used to lay it in the middle of a meatloaf once in awhile, and good just plain. Tasted like a cross between velveeta and American cheese slices I guess is the best I can do.