What is "government cheese"

n. (context US English) processed cheese provided to welfare and food stamp recipients in the United States during the 1980s and early 1990s.

Government cheese is processed cheese that was provided to welfare, Food Stamp recipients and the elderly receiving Social Security in the United States, and is still provided to food charities. The processed cheese was used in military kitchens since World War II and in schools since as early as the 1960s.