Is It Necessary To Verify Products Like Cheese Are Gluten Free?

[Clark Bent as Stupor-Man]

I'm asking this question despite having been gluten-free for 3 and a half years now . But my diet's been quite restrictive during this time in addition to gluten and I'm only recently adding in a wider variety of foods.

So, if I go to pick up say, a block of cheddar cheese, should I contact the company first to make sure it's gluten-free and there hasn't been cross-contamination at the manufacturing facility or is this going overboard? I know it's recommended to check for a product such as potato chips even if there's no gluten ingredients so is it likewise recommended to check something like cheese? I've probably erred on the side of caution in the past but I'm inclined to think it's fine to just buy it without checking, and I don't think I'm all that sensitive to gluten anyway as I've been successfully eating out for a year or 2 now.

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.

[psawyer]

The only time I worry about cheese is when it is a cheese spread, cheese sauce, or is flavored. Pure cheese, including cottage cheese and cream cheese, is not something where I worry about cross-contact, because a cheese factory isn't likely to process gluten products. Same for things like milk and butter.

Some people worry about shredded cheeses, but I just buy Kraft ones because of their labeling policy.

Potato chips can contain gluten as an ingredient, and sharing of lines with other snack foods is common.