It’s another Fun Fact Friday! Today’s fun fact: Ketchup was once sold as medicine! That’s right—the beloved condiment on your fries and burgers has a surprising history that spans continents, cultures, and even pharmacies.
From Fish Sauce to Mushroom Mix
Ketchup’s story begins in China around 300 BCE, where it wasn’t tomato-based at all—it was actually a fermented fish sauce. British traders developed a taste for it and brought the idea back to Europe. Since soybeans (a key ingredient) weren’t widely available, they improvised. By the 1600s, British recipes relied heavily on mushrooms, and “mushroom ketchup” was the standard condiment. Colonists in America picked up the trend too, with mushroom ketchup recipes dating back to at least 1770.
Tomatoes Enter the Scene
In 1812, scientist and horticulturist James Meade created the first tomato-based ketchup. At the time, tomatoes were viewed with suspicion—many Europeans and Americans thought they were poisonous because of their resemblance to nightshade berries. Strangely enough, people were far more willing to consume tomatoes once they were cooked, spiced, and bottled up as ketchup than to eat them fresh.
Ketchup as a Cure-All
Enter Dr. John Cook Bennett of Ohio. In 1834, he claimed tomatoes could cure everything from indigestion to cholera. Riding the wave of tomato enthusiasm, he launched “Bennett’s Medical Ketchup,” which was sold in drugstores and even advertised in medical journals. Of course, it didn’t take long for the medical claims to fall flat, and ketchup as a medicine fizzled out by the late 1800s.
Heinz to the Rescue
Ketchup’s reputation took another hit in the 1860s, when shady manufacturers used coal tar for coloring and loaded their products with chemical preservatives. Then came Henry J. Heinz, who perfected a natural, preservative-free version using ripe, high-pectin tomatoes. His 1876 launch revolutionized ketchup and set the gold standard for what we recognize today. By 1907, Heinz was producing 12 million bottles annually and exporting around the world.
(Pro tip: If you’ve ever struggled with a stubborn Heinz glass bottle, try the famous “57 Trick.” Tilt the bottle at a 45-degree angle and tap the “57” embossed on the glass—it works like magic!)
The “Fancy” Label & Today’s Ketchup Craze
Ever spotted “Fancy” on a ketchup label? That’s not just clever marketing—it’s actually a USDA grade. “Fancy” ketchup has a higher concentration of tomato solids (33% or more by weight), which makes it thicker, richer, and more vibrant.
Ketchup’s natural acidity keeps it shelf-stable, but Heinz still recommends refrigerating it to maintain peak flavor. And it’s no wonder—today, ketchup is found in 97% of American households. Heinz leads the pack, with Americans consuming a jaw-dropping 71 pounds of ketchup per person every year, making the U.S. the world’s ketchup champion.
So next time you squeeze that bottle onto your fries, remember: you’re not just enjoying a condiment—you’re tasting a quirky piece of history that was once thought to cure cholera!