Posted on 08/25/2015 5:52:35 AM PDT by JoeProBono
In the United States, Heinz is nearly synonymous with ketchup, but Israel has kicked the brand out of that category of condiments all together.
Israel’s Health Ministry recently ruled that the Heinz brand product does not contain enough “tomato solids” to be labeled as ketchup in Israeli stores. It will now be relegated to the title “tomato seasoning,” Ynet reported.
The ruling was the result of a lobbying campaign by Israeli food manufacturer Osem, which produces a large portion of the ketchup consumed in Israel. Israelis have long complained that local monopolies distort the economy, and especially the food market, leading to high prices on products like cottage cheese and Milky brand pudding.
In a letter the company sent to retailers back in January, Osem claimed that it had tested Heinz ketchup in a “leading European external laboratory” and found that it only contained 21 percent tomato concentrate instead of the 61 percent it advertised to consumers. Israeli trade standards require ketchup to have at least 41 percent tomato concentrate.
The letter sparked a war of words between Osem and Diplomat, the company that distributes Heinz ketchup in Israel. Osem controls about two thirds of the market for Israeli ketchup, leaving Heinz in a distant second place in terms of sales.
“Obviously, Osem, which has a monopoly, would be happy if it were only possible to sell their product in Israel,” a spokesperson for Diplomat told Ynet in January. “But Osem’s claims have no substance.”
Osem fired back, claiming that no one else had raised legitimate concerns about the composition of Heinz’s product.
According to Haaretz, Diplomat is currently petitioning to change the Health Ministry’s standards in order to allow Heinz to qualify as ketchup once more.
In the meantime, consumers may be left wondering about Heinz ketchup’s actual tomato content.
I've switched to Salsa. There are quite a few salsa choices that are all vegetable with maybe a very little real sugar, no dyes, inexpensive and tasty.
You shake and shake the ketchup bottle
First none comes, and then a lottle.
I don't know if it's that I'm getting older or what, but I've noticed a lot of foods have gotten sweeter over the years. Ketchup, bread, even "unsweetened" breakfast cereal, just to name a few examples.
I’m not sure I would actually want to ...
But how many people, today, have the knowledge and skill to make that recipe?
You need to come over to the Weekly Cooking Thread. There are many excellent cooks on FR.
(I’m not sure they’d want to make that either, though ;-)
-JT
:)
THEY DO!
Whataburger, H-E-B bring new restaurant items to store shelves By Craig Hlavaty, Houston Chronicle Updated 9:41 am, Thursday, June 19, 2014 
Whataburger will launch into retail sales for the first time by bottling its popular line of condiments Fancy Ketchup, Spicy Ketchup and Original Mustard making them available exclusively at all Texas and Mexico H-E-B stores this summer. H-E-B will carry both of Whataburger s ketchup varieties, Fancy Ketchup and Spicy Ketchup, in 20-ounce bottles and its Original Mustard in 16-ounce bottles with labeling that reads, Bottled by Popular Demand , Wake Up Your Taste Buds and The True Taste of a Whataburger. Whataburger s Original Mustard is a one-of-a-kind recipe that was first spread on a Whataburger in the 1950s, and its Fancy Ketchup with a recipe that proves not all ketchups are created equal has been a customer favorite for years. Bottled condiments will not be available for purchase at Whataburger restaurants at this time. Photo: Courtesy Photo, Whataburger
I must get to HEB, I’ve got to get some of this! Thanks and I am so, so happy I can have a whole bottle of that spicy ketchup! LOVE that stuff!
A little context as to why: My Old Man tells a story how when he would stop for lunch with his designer employee on the way back to the office from a jobsite, and the employee would always order the same thing, a patty melt and French fries. When the order came, as my father explains it, this employee would take the ketchup bottle (which seemed like it was always a fresh bottle), and uncap it and invert the bottle over the plate and sit there waiting for the ketchup to magically come out of the bottle, like he had nowhere to be in the next 3 days... when in actuality, the Old Man wanted to get back to the office ASAP and start drawing up what they had just field dimensioned, or get started writing an engineering proposal for the possible new job they just looked at. The Old Man had somewhere to be... but not his designer... sitting there sighing waiting, for the ketchup to come out of the bottle, or maybe rapture... or maybe both.
The Old Man always demonstrated his former employee's technique as this story gets told... as the story is always told at the very same diner they would always stop at, and a bottle was available on the table to use as a visual aid.
Picturing my father holding that bottle, giving the gentlest shakes, like he didn't want ketchup to come out... and then my father explaining how he always wanted to grab the bottle out of his employee's hand and violently shake out half the bottle on his fries... Oh, geez... seeing that gif totally reminds me of that story... I just can't stop laughing.
It's just... kinda expensive for fast food... and I may as well go get me some brisket... or gumbo and an oyster poboy instead... or ALL of that.
I miss Texas... so much.
I tried French’s and was not impressed. It has the correct consistency, but seems flat. A bit more vinegar or some lemon juice is required to make it tangy.
Reminds me of a popular saying in the late 50’s early 60’s. He/she doesn’t know shit from shinola
Fancy is the good stuff
Ping me to then next one?
I’m quite sure that I could make that recipe, and reasonably certain that I would consider the result to be nasty.
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