Title: Ketchup - Wikipedia
Headings: Ketchup
Ketchup
Contents
History
Mushroom ketchup
Main article: Mushroom ketchup
Tomato ketchup
Later innovations
Terminology
Etymology
Cantonese theory
Malay theory
European-Arabic theory
Early uses in English
Composition
"Fancy" ketchup
Processing
Nutrition
Viscosity
Separation
See also
References
External links

Content: Also written as ketchup]." Modern ketchup emerged in the early years of the 20th century, out of a debate over the use of sodium benzoate as a preservative in condiments. Harvey W. Wiley, the "father" of the Food and Drug Administration in the US, challenged the safety of benzoate which was banned in the 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act . In response, entrepreneurs including Henry J. Heinz, pursued an alternative recipe that eliminated the need for that preservative. Katherine Bitting, a microbotanist working for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, carried out research that proved in 1909 that increasing the sugar and vinegar content of the product would prevent spoilage without use of artificial preservatives. She was assisted by her husband, Arvil Bitting, an official at that agency. Prior to Heinz (and his fellow innovators), commercial tomato ketchups of that time were watery and thin, in part due to the use of unripe tomatoes, which were low in pectin. They had less vinegar than modern ketchups; by pickling ripe tomatoes, the need for benzoate was eliminated without spoilage or degradation in flavor. But the changes driven by the desire to eliminate benzoate also produced changes that some experts (such as Andrew F. Smith) believe were key to the establishment of tomato ketchup as the dominant American condiment.