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| Product type | Cream cheese |
|---|---|
| Owner | Kraft Heinz, Mondelez International |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1872 |
| Website | Kraft Heinz Mondelez International |
Philadelphia Cream Cheese is a brand of cream cheese. It is one of the best selling brands of cream cheese worldwide, first produced in 1872 and is currently owned by Kraft Heinz and Mondelez International.[1]
Despite its name, Philadelphia Cream Cheese was invented in New York State, not Philadelphia.[2] In 1872 William Lawrence, a dairyman from Chester, New York, attempted to make Neufchâtel, a tangy, crumblier cheese product that was popular in Europe at the time. Instead he accidentally added an excessive amount of cream and created a richer, more spreadable cheese, which would eventually be called "cream cheese". It was not marketed as "Philadelphia Cream Cheese" until 1880. That year, Lawrence partnered with A.L. Reynolds, a cheese distributor in New York to sell larger quantities of cream cheese. At the time, Philadelphia and its surrounding area had a reputation for high-quality dairy farms and creamier cheese products, so they decided to use the name "Philadelphia" on the foil-wrapped blocks of their cream cheese. The company went through some changes over the years and the trademarked Philadelphia name was sold to the Phenix Cheese Company in South Edmeston, New York. In 1928, Phenix merged with Kraft to form the Kraft-Phenix Cheese Company. Philadelphia Cream Cheese has remained a staple product in the average household and in many eateries and bagel shops worldwide.[3][4]
The brand's popularity has spread outside of the United States, and it is the most popular cream cheese brand worldwide.[5]
In 2019, an advertisement for Philadelphia Cream Cheese that portrayed an absent-minded father were banned under a new British law that forbade gender stereotyping on TV advertisements.[6]
