Nutritionist Highlights Discrepancies in Mozzarella Cheese Brands

Nutritionist Pedro Muniz has conducted an analysis of various mozzarella cheese brands, highlighting significant differences in their composition. By examining the labels, Muniz established a ranking to guide consumers in choosing genuine mozzarella cheese.

Criteria for Genuine Mozzarella

Muniz emphasized that true mozzarella should have a pronounced flavor and a characteristic stretchiness when melted. Brands that deviate from the traditional recipe often melt unevenly and have a softer texture. These products also tend to have longer ingredient lists with more additives.

Top and Bottom Brands

According to Muniz's ranking, Tirolez topped the list for using only essential ingredients such as milk, starter culture, salt, and coagulant, without any additional substances. Santa Clara and Aviação followed in second and third places, respectively, for maintaining a simple formulation without unnecessary components.

On the other hand, the brand Qualitá was rated the lowest, not qualifying as traditional mozzarella. Muniz classified it as a 'mozzarella-flavored food preparation' due to its composition. Polenghi was also noted as a processed mozzarella cheese, which, despite resembling traditional cheese, does not adhere to the original recipe.

Consumer Guidance

Muniz concluded his analysis by highlighting the importance of reading labels as the most reliable method for consumers to distinguish genuine mozzarella cheese from industrialized products that only mimic its appearance. He assessed ten of the best and ten of the worst mozzarella brands available in the market.