Wegmans Ultra-Pasteurized Heavy Cream, 1 Pint — TREAT

Munch or Dump rates Wegmans Ultra-Pasteurized Heavy Cream, 1 Pint by Wegmans TREAT — score 45/90.

Cream plus one gum. The gellan gum is there because ultra-pasteurization cooks the cream hard enough for a long shelf life that it hurts its ability to whip and hold texture — so a stabilizer patches it back. Fine for most uses, but know that 'heavy cream' here isn't just cream.

Why this verdict

• Two ingredients — cream and gellan gum, no flavors, sweeteners, or preservatives
• Gellan gum is a benign fermentation-derived stabilizer, but it exists to compensate for the harsher ultra-pasteurization process
• At ~50 kcal and 5g fat per tablespoon (nearly all saturated), this is a richness delivery system — indulgent by definition
• Purists wanting to make cultured butter or the loftiest whipped cream should seek gum-free, vat-pasteurized cream

Ingredients (2)

• cream (safe) — Real butterfat, second on the list.
• gellan gum (moderate) — Stabilizer made by bacterial fermentation. Considered safe by regulators; added to restore body and whippability lost to ultra-pasteurization.