Lactose-Free Mild Cheddar Bar - 8 oz

Green Valley makes cheese for people who thought they'd given up real cheese for good. This lactose-free Mild Cheddar Bar is cultured and ripened the same way traditional cheddar always has been — then finished with a lactase enzyme that fully breaks down the lactose, so there's none left to cause trouble.

Each 8 oz bar delivers a smooth, creamy melt and the mellow, buttery flavor of a young cheddar — good for slicing, shredding, or melting into whatever you're cooking. Annatto gives it its familiar golden color; salt and enzyme cultures do the rest of the work of turning milk into cheese.

Shred it into scrambled eggs, layer it into a grilled cheese, melt it over nachos, or fold it into a stovetop mac and cheese — it handles like standard cheddar in every recipe because, apart from the lactose, it is standard cheddar.

Gluten-free and made with a vegetarian enzyme instead of animal rennet, this bar fits vegetarian and lactose-intolerant kitchens alike. With no carbs and no added sugars, it also slots easily into keto and paleo eating plans. Keep it refrigerated and use by the date on the package for the best melt and flavor.

Ingredients: Pasteurized Cultured Milk, Salt, Annatto (Color), Vegetarian Enzyme, and Lactase Enzyme.

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Common Questions

How is this different from regular cheddar, and does it taste the same?
Nutritionally, it's essentially identical to conventional mild cheddar — around 110 calories, 9 grams of fat, and 7 grams of protein per 1-ounce serving, with the same calcium and sodium levels you'd see on a standard cheddar label. The only meaningful difference is carbohydrate content from lactose, which starts at roughly 0-1 gram per serving here versus up to 1 gram in regular cheddar that hasn't been treated. Flavor-wise, testers and lactose-intolerant customers consistently describe it as matching young, mellow cheddar rather than tasting like a specialty substitute, because it's made from the same cultured milk process, just with one extra enzymatic step at the end.

How does the lactase enzyme actually remove the lactose?
Lactose is a disaccharide made of glucose and galactose bonded together, and lactase is the enzyme that breaks that bond. In this cheese, lactase is added during production and allowed to fully digest the residual lactose left in the curd after culturing, converting it into simple sugars your body doesn't need lactase to absorb. That's a different process than 'lactose-reduced' products, which only partially break down lactose — this bar targets complete breakdown, which is why people with true lactase deficiency (the enzyme most adults stop producing after childhood, per the NIH) tolerate it without the usual bloating or GI discomfort.

Does this fit a keto, paleo, or carnivore diet?
For keto, yes — at roughly 0-1 gram net carb, 9 grams of fat, and 7 grams of protein per ounce, it fits easily into a high-fat, low-carb macro target without spending your daily carb allowance. For carnivore, it's animal-derived and free of grains or fillers, so most carnivore practitioners include it, though strict versions of the diet that exclude all dairy would still rule it out. Paleo is more case-by-case: dairy in general is excluded by classic paleo guidelines, but many modern paleo-adjacent eaters include grass-fed or minimally processed cheese, and this one has no gums, starches, or anti-caking agents that would violate paleo food-quality standards even if lactose weren't a concern.

Can I use this in place of regular cheddar in recipes without changing anything?
Yes, in nearly all applications — it shreds, slices, and melts the same way because it's made with the same culturing and aging process as standard mild cheddar, not a processed cheese alternative. It works in a grilled cheese, folds smoothly into a stovetop mac and cheese without separating, and melts evenly over nachos or into scrambled eggs. The one place to watch is very slow, low-heat applications like a cheese fondue base, where any natural cheddar (lactose-free or not) can turn slightly grainy if overheated, so keep the heat gentle and stir it in gradually just as you would with conventional cheddar.

What does the Organic certification actually verify here?
USDA Organic certification means the milk came from cows raised without synthetic hormones or antibiotics, fed at least 30 percent of their diet from pasture during the grazing season, and given feed grown without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers — verified through annual inspections and paperwork audits by an accredited certifying agent. It also restricts the ingredient list: the annatto color, salt, and enzymes used all have to meet the National Organic Program's approved substances list rather than being synthetic additives. You can look up the specific certifying agent and audit history through the USDA's organic integrity database if you want to confirm the certification is current.

Is this cheese vegetarian, and what does the enzyme statement mean?
Yes — traditional cheddar is typically made with animal rennet, an enzyme extracted from calf stomach lining, but this bar uses a vegetarian (microbial or fermentation-derived) enzyme instead to coagulate the milk. That's what allows it to carry a Vegetarian certification alongside the Gluten-Free and Organic marks. The lactase enzyme added afterward for lactose breakdown is a separate additive and is also non-animal-derived, so the entire production chain avoids animal rennet from start to finish.

Will this cause a reaction if I'm lactose intolerant but not dairy allergic?
For lactose intolerance specifically, this cheese is formulated to have effectively no lactose left to trigger the usual bloating, gas, or cramping caused by undigested lactose fermenting in the gut. It's not a solution for a milk protein allergy, however, since the casein and whey proteins from the pasteurized cultured milk are still fully present — someone with a true dairy allergy (an immune response to milk protein, not a digestive enzyme issue) should avoid it just as they would any other cheese. If you're unsure which issue you have, a doctor can distinguish lactose intolerance from milk allergy with a simple hydrogen breath test or IgE panel.