American cheese will never die. It has too many preservatives.

But it’s melting away. One by one, America’s food outlets are abandoning the century-old American staple, with many replacing it with fancier cheeses. Wendy’s is offering asiago. A&W’s Canada locations switched to real cheddar. McDonald’s is selling the Big Mac’s soft, orange square of American cheese with a version that doesn’t contain artificial preservatives. Panera Bread ditched its old-fashioned grilled cheese made with American and replaced it with a four-cheese combo of fontina, cheddar, manteaux and smoked gouda. The result: higher sales.