The Cottage Cheese Brand That's One Of The Unhealthiest You Can Buy

While in its most basic form, cottage cheese is a dairy-rich food loaded with ample amounts of protein, there are some brands that are better for you than others. Out of all the available options at your neighborhood grocery store, Daisy cottage cheese with strawberries may be one variety worth skipping. The ingredient list for this fruit-based snack may include more additives than necessary. To better understand the differences that set this specific brand of cottage cheese apart from the rest, it's important to know what makes cottage cheese healthy in the first place.

Cottage cheese is a fresh cheese made up of curds from pasteurized cow's milk. Due to its mild taste, these creamy curds prove to be a versatile food that can be easily incorporated into a well-rounded diet. One ½ cup of low fat cottage cheese contains 14 grams of protein and significant amounts of selenium, phosphorus, and riboflavin. Since cottage cheese is made from milk that contains varying amounts of fat and occasionally includes added ingredients, the benefits of cottage cheese may differ depending on the brand. Specifically, Daisy cottage cheese with strawberries not only has added sugars from the strawberry puree, but also more sodium than conventional servings of other popular varieties. This variety is also made with 4% milk fat, meaning each individual container includes a significant amount of saturated fat.

Unfortunately, Daisy cottage cheese with strawberries made Daily Meal's list of the unhealthiest store-bought cottage cheese brands you can buy at grocery stores nationwide. While this variety still has a few positive attributes, the size of these individual cups amplifies the drawbacks of this sweet snack. First and foremost, a general serving of cottage cheese is typically ½ cup while these individual cups are 170 grams or approximately ¾ cup of cottage cheese and strawberry puree. Therefore, the nutrition stats for this specific variety automatically differ.

First off, due to the added strawberries, each snack-size tub contains 10 grams of sugar, 5 of which are added sugars. Beyond the 420 milligrams of sodium (or 18% of your daily allowance), each container has 3.5 grams of saturated fat. This is primarily due to the fact that Daisy cottage cheese with strawberries is made with 4% milk fat. To compare this product with a low fat alternative, one ½ cup of Daisy cottage cheese made with 2% milk has 1.5 grams of saturated fat.

On the plus side, each container of Daisy cottage cheese with strawberries contains 10% of your daily calcium as well as 14 grams of protein. While you may enjoy the flavor of this fruit-based snack, if you're looking to minimize your intake of sugar, sodium, and fat, choose an unflavored, low fat variety of cottage cheese and better yet, add your own fruit.