Is Roquefort Cheese Acidic or Alkaline?
Roquefort cheese (raw) is strongly acid-forming: Positive PRAL: acid-forming after digestion.
Classification
Roquefort comes in at +13.7, below raclette cheese (+17.4), because this blue cheese contains more fat, which slightly dilutes the protein and phosphorus per 100 g. It is still clearly acid-forming. Crumbled over pear and lamb's lettuce, the amount stays small: 20 g comes to just under +3. Eaten by the chunk from a cheese board, it adds up quickly.
In the Cheese category, Roquefort cheese (raw) ranks #17 of 37, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Limburger cheese (+13.0), Mozzarella (+12.7), Blue cheese (general) (+12.7). More acid-forming are Camembert cheese (+15.2), Halloumi cheese (+15.4), Colby cheese (+16.3).
Acidic or alkaline: PRAL, not pH
On this site, acidic and alkaline refer to the PRAL (potential renal acid load). It estimates what a food leaves behind once it has been digested: a positive value is acid-forming, a negative value is alkalizing. That is different from the pH of the food itself: a lemon tastes sour, yet its PRAL is −4.0, so it is alkalizing. Your diet does not change your blood pH. It does change how much acid your kidneys have to deal with.
What balances Roquefort cheese
A slice (30 g) of Roquefort cheese adds +4.1 to your daily balance. These three bring it back; the grams shown offset exactly this serving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Roquefort cheese acidic?
It depends on what you mean by acidic. The pH describes the food itself, for example how sour it tastes. The PRAL describes what it leaves behind after digestion: Roquefort cheese (raw) has a PRAL of +13.7 per 100 g, so it counts as strongly acid-forming in your daily acid-base balance.
How much lamb's lettuce offsets a slice (30 g) of Roquefort cheese?
A slice (30 g) of Roquefort cheese adds +4.1 to your daily balance. Lamb's lettuce (fresh) has −8.3 per 100 g, so about 50 g of lamb's lettuce offset this serving.
Do I have to avoid Roquefort cheese on an alkaline diet?
No. What counts is the balance of the whole day, not a single food. Roquefort cheese is strongly acid-forming; with enough vegetables, potatoes and fruit on the same plate, the meal stays balanced.
Roquefort Cheese logged, balance checked.
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Compare all Cheese: Cheese table. Common questions are answered in Acidic or Alkaline?, and the PRAL calculator adds up a whole meal.
Source: Basentracker food database (PRAL according to Remer & Manz, calculated from protein, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium per 100 g). This information does not replace medical advice.