Some history:

Freshly drawn milk just needs to rest for a thick layer of cream to appear on the surface. This simplicity explains why cream has existed since the dawn of time. A Sumerian fresco shows it being used in around 2500 BC.

What is cream?

Cream comes exclusively from milk. The addition of any fatty matter is strictly forbidden.

According to regulations, cream should contain no less than 12 % of fatty matter. Furthermore, between 12 and 30% of fatty matter the cream is considered as "light". To be entitled to the "cream" label, the product should contain at least  30% of fatty matter.

Creams, besides raw cream, are always heat-processed (pasteurization or sterilization).
However, "fresh" should never appear on the packaging of sterilized cream. Only cream that has been pasteurized and packaged within 24 hours after pasteurization is entitled to use the word "fresh".

The different creams are identified through several criteria: preservation methods, fatty matter content and consistency.

Raw cream

It has undergone no heat-processing. The direct product of skimming, it is cooled and stored at + 6 °C.

Pasteurized fluid fresh cream

As its name indicates, it is pasteurized. No cultures are added which is why it is liquid and  has a sweet taste. However, as it is more fragile than sterilized cream, it is less frequently used by consumers.
Restaurateurs like it for its ability to trap the air, making it light and and easy to whip.

Pasteurized thick fresh cream (crème fraîche)

The cream has matured, after pasteurisation and cooling. The addition of lactic ferments thickens and provides has a strong, sharp taste.

Sterilized cream

Once packaged, raw cream is sterilized at 115 °C for 15 to 20 minutes, then cooled. As this process develops a "cooked" or caramel taste, it is increasingly preferred to UHT cream.

UHT cream

Raw cream is sterilized at 150 °C for 2 seconds, then rapidly cooled. Its nutritional and functional qualities and taste are preserved.

Light cream

It is obtained with cream with a fatty matter content between 12 and 30 %. The precise rate should always be specified on the packaging.
It may be liquid or thick (if it has been fermented and matured) and must be pasteurized or sterilized.

Whipping cream or light whipping cream

It contains at least 75 % cream or light cream. Saccharose (15 % maximum), lactic ferments, natural aromatic matter, stabilizers or milk proteins may also be added.

Chantilly cream

This is whipped cream containing at least 30 % fatty matter. The only addition authorised is saccharose and natural flavourings.

Pressurized cream

Similar in composition to whipping cream (with stabilizers: 0.1 %), it is always pasteurized or sterilized.

Isigny cream

The only AOC (guarantee of origin) applied to a cream. Isigny cream is thick, pasteurized fresh cream characterized by its delicacy.
Produced on the territory of Isigny (Normandy, in France), it should contain at least 35 % of fatty matter (in practice, it always specifies 40 %).

Sour cream

Obtained by bacterial fermentation, it is used in eastern and central Europe (with herring, goulash) as well as in English and American cooking.
In France, it is rarely used. A similar taste is obtained by adding lemon juice to cream. It is then served with blinis or rollmop.