Kraft Dinner

Kraft Dinner (marketed as KD in Canada; Kraft Mac & Cheese in the United States, Australia, and New Zealand; and Mac and Cheese internationally) is a nonperishable packaged macaroni and cheese mix. It is made by Kraft Foods Group (or former parent company Mondelez internationally) and traditionally cardboard-boxed with dried macaroni pasta and a packet of processed cheese powder. The product was first marketed in many U.S. states in 1936, typically for 15 cents a box (“grated cheese and macaroni--dinner for four in nine minutes”). Marketing in Canada began in late 1937. The brand is particularly popular with Canadians, who consume 55% more boxes per capita than Americans. There are now many similar products, including private label, of nonperishable boxed macaroni and cheese. Commercially, the line has evolved, with deluxe varieties marketed with liquid processed cheese and microwavable frozen mac-and-cheese meals. The product by Kraft has added many flavour variations and formulations, including Easy Mac (now Mac & Cheese Dinner Cups), a single-serving product specifically designed for microwave ovens. The product's innovation, at the time of the Great Depression, was to conveniently market nonperishable dried macaroni noodles together with a processed cheese powder. It is prepared by cooking the pasta and adding the cheese powder, butter (or margarine), and milk.