In the mid-1900s in the United States, the population began to fall in love with a vinegary, sweet sauce made with tomatoes: ketchup. But, everything began to change when the industry began to abuse the use of preservatives.
Different flavors and exploding bottles
Shutterstock Bottles of vine and fermentation are not a good combination (Source: Sutterstock / Reproduction)
Ketchup is a direct descendant of an Asian recipe called cat-sup that mixes fermented fish and tomato. The first time something like this appeared in a cookbook was in 1810, and from there the success only grew. Soon, the recipe was modified and after the American Civil War, the bottles with the sweet tomato sauce invaded the shelves of the markets.
In this first phase of the industry, the ketchup was fermented and sold in bottles. of glass. However, the combination of fermentation and breakable packaging began to take a toll on the industry, as headlines began to pop up about ketchup bottles exploding on American tables, causing injuries to some customers. So the sauce makers needed an alternative to make the product safe. That’s when preservatives entered the field and started what would become a war.
Harvey Wiley and the war on preservatives
Dr. Harvey Wiley was the director of the Chemistry Division at the US Department of Agriculture and, in 1904, troubled by the advance of the use of preservatives, he decided to form a group to research the effects of preservatives on the body of young volunteers. The result was terrible and the health of the participants declined after consuming so many chemicals.
Wiley asked, in 1907, for a ban on the use of benzoates as a preservative. Industry executives were against it, but the researcher gained a powerful ally: Henry Heinz. In the early 1900s, the industry led by the businessman was already testing ketchup without preservatives, so he combined the useful with the pleasant and decided to support the ban on the use of benzoate.
O end of ketchup diversity
Heinz Factory in 1954 (Source: Atlas Obscura / Reproduction)
In 1906, Heinz managed to reach a Stable, preservative-free ketchup recipe. The basis of the recipe was hygiene: the tomatoes were carefully selected and boiled. In addition, they received much more salt, sugar and vinegar. The Heinz industry also promoted a heavy marketing campaign against preservatives and was very successful, as in the end it almost completely dominated the ketchup market.
Like all wars, one side always loses. and in this case it was the diversity of flavors. To meet the new standards created by Heinz, other companies had to adapt their recipes and the ketchup started to have more or less the same taste regardless of the brand.
