Ever notice that "American Cheese" is synonymous with bland, plastic scented cheese? Could it really be that we, as a country, can not make processed cheese without destroying out all that is good and tasty? And if it's so bad... (and you know that it is) why do we keep making it? Well, apparently because it sells.
According to the Cattle Network (Ha ha, no, that's not social commentary on current television offerings), "January [2008] through June [2008] cheese exports were 156.5 million pounds, 48% more than a year ago". Why would anyone buy this terrible stuff, and in greater volumes than before?
Well, it turns out cheese made in America isn't as bad as "American Cheese". We are victims of slander dating back to the 1800's.
"Lesson of a bit of cheese", The New York Times: 8, December 9, 1878 . "There are other important lessons which the fair closed on Saturday will suggest to the practical men. One of them is that the best grades of American cheese should enter the foreign market and our own with an American label, not as spurious Roquefort, Stilton, Swiss, &c. As it is, for the most part, only certain inferior grades of American manufacture enter the foreign market as American, to the great detriment of our reputation for fine production, though, possibly, to the present profit of middlemen and commission houses."
And there you have it. From our earliest days in the market our best cheeses have been relabeled as European, and our, um...shall we say lesser attempts, were left to drag the name of "American Cheese" into the mud.
Today "American Cheese" is a type in of itself and quite separate from the fabulous offerings that are often made in America. And all that cheese that we export? Yes, it is "American Cheese". Unfortunately, it seems that if you make something long enough, someone will grow to enjoy it. Top buyers? Mexico and Japan. So when you make that trip to Tokyo, at least the cheese will be authentic on your squid-mayo pizza.