Heinz Ketchup Holds the Salt

by Naomi Shulman, Posted May 14th 2010 @ 1:00PM

You may find the coming summer months taste a little...different. Just after the FDA announced its plans to limit salt in processed foods, Heinz has given word that it's tweaking the recipe for its iconic ketchup -- and the new bottles will hit stores this summer. The company, which has not changed this ketchup recipe in 40 years, believes the new formula -- which contains 15 percent less sodium -- will be as popular as the old version, according to the AP. And that's very popular indeed -- the brand corners about 60 percent of the ketchup market. But some customers are expressing doubt.

"Leave the ketchup alone," one Brooklynite said to the New YorkPost. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Another, an octogenarian who's been eating Heinz ketchup for most of his life, lamented in the same article: "I haven't died yet. It's really hard for me to eat without salt. I think it's infringing on our rights!"

Marketing strategists are surely thinking back to the days of New Coke, a massive PR failure, but the Heinz ketchup reformulation has some important differences. For one thing, the catalyst for the change would appear not to be PR but rather public health. Spokeswoman Jessica Jackson told the Post that the company was keeping "the needs of our consumers and our commitment to health and wellness" in mind. The other major difference is the lack of a glitzy ad campaign. Bottles containing the new recipe will have no hint on the label; customers will have to look at the nutritional data in order to tell the difference. (Or, maybe, just taste it.)

Filed Under: Health & Medical, New Products
Tags: heinz, heinz ketchup, ketchup, lower salt, new formula

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Reader comments (Page 5 of 7)

5-16-2010 @4:47PM irishamrep said... Ok...than I will not buy it, those liberal freals "acromeglia Kerry" and his ugly wife don't need my money anyway. HUNT'S KETCHUP here we come!!!!! And aks all yor favorite restaurants to SWITCH!!!!
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5-16-2010 @6:32PM DELUMIERE said... O.K. I gave up alcohol and drugs because it was not good for my health; I gave up sex and gambling because it was not good for my mental health; I gave up bad eating habits. I have given up about every pleasure in life for my "health" all except one ... pleasing my palette ... this is the last straw. Changing the recipe on Heinz makes my life now terminal! Thanks for deciding for me (sardonic humor here).
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5-16-2010 @4:49PM Bubba said... Don't forget that flavor enhancer MSG (natural flavor) Monosodium Glutamate. Its an ecitotoxin (kills brain cells, and can lead to Alzheimers, and Dementia.
food ingriedients to stay away from: Soy, High Fructose Corn Syrup, MSG, Fluoride, Bromide's (Brominated vegetable oil) in most cloudy citrus soda's, Splenda, Nutrasweet, any diet soda's.
Don't let food become a drug.. Eat to live, don't live to eat. It's all about portion control.
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5-16-2010 @4:52PM Larry said... They are lowering sodium content not necessarily total salt content. Potassium chloride is good for BP and tastes a bit saltier than regular salt so adding that instead would not change the taste.
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5-16-2010 @7:29PM Chris said... Diabetics would love to have the sugars removed
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5-16-2010 @5:03PM Mandy said... SAY IT ISN'T SO!!!

How about two varieties -- Traditional and Low Salt?

Everything is NOT "either or or," " black or white", "on or off," "with or wihtout." Sometimes, companies actually work to appease us distressed consumers, and they offer us a choice!

C'mon, Heinz! OFFER US A CHOICE!
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5-16-2010 @5:10PM Celeste said... And how about people whose bodies don't absorb salt well, so they need more of it? That's what a doctor explained to me about my metabolism many years ago. No wonder I ate kosher salt out of the box as a kid. I'm with the people who want a low salt version but stick to the original recipe in the original. However, we buy generic ketchup and we're not missing out. It tastes fine.
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5-16-2010 @7:09PM Devine said... The BEST Ketchup is at Whataburger in Texas.
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5-16-2010 @5:13PM Scott said... Let's see now.... I just checked a bottle and a "serving size" is one tablespoon and contains 190 grams of sodium. Reducing that by 15% saves 29 grams, which is only about 1.5% of the total recommended daily dose of this bad sodium stuff. It seems to me that you would have to eat a whole lot of ketchup for this small savings to make a dent in your total intake.
Wait. Hold on. If it doesn't taste quite right, one might be tempted to reach for, of all things, a salt shaker.
A tip of the hat for very nice marketing ploy, Heinz!
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5-16-2010 @5:13PM Jim said... Heinz changing the recipe? Good thing there is still Del Monte, and Hunts, Guess Heinz doesn't care what the people want... Make a low sodium version, sure, but lower the original, and mess with my taste buds, I'll buy ketchup from the competition.....
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5-16-2010 @5:15PM charlesharris53 said... i would expect nothing less of heinz. since kerry's wife is the owner of the company.
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5-16-2010 @5:38PM Renee said... They did get rid of the HFCS it's called Reduced Sugar Heinz
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5-16-2010 @5:31PM Jane said... why cant we have both should be peoples choice of what we want with or low sodium we the customers that buy the product should have the choice
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5-16-2010 @5:34PM ray said... I've been buying the low salt version for many years. I'm glad to hear they're reducing the salt. I hate Hunt's brand Ketchup.
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5-16-2010 @5:37PM Darlene said... I quit buying ALL Heinz products when Kerry ran for president and heard his wife (owner of Heinz speak!) Plus MSG is horrible for the mind and body.
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5-16-2010 @5:47PM Killer Kitten said... I am sick to death of laws being passed and things being altered for my own good. I'm an adult and have been for many years. If I want to eat salt, ride without a seatbelt or do anything that is not good for me why shouldn't I be able to do it? I'm not harming anybody but myself and why shouldn't I have a right to harm myself if I want to?

Oh wait, I was thinking I live in America. Silly me.
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5-16-2010 @5:43PM KatieCouric'sNemesis said... Add your own salt to taste.

What the food manufacturers really need to do is get rid of the tons of sugar and high fructose corn syrup they put in foods.

And the food colouring/dyes they add.

My grandmother's home-canned catsup was the very best. It was dark in color as she did not add food coloring to her canning recipes. She added very little salt, as people salt to taste when they cook and again when the food is on the table.

Her year-round cool cellar was lined with jars and jars of goodies and covered over by black tarp to keep any stray sunbeams away from her handiwork.

We were healthier and better fed from her pantry than any corporation's glop.
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5-16-2010 @5:47PM crystal said... leave the stuff alone. no wonder food don't taste the same. the fda making companies change something takes away from the quality of the product and i am not buying a ketchup with less salt in it
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