Heinz Ketchup Has Different Ingredients in the U.S. Than It Does in the U.K. and We Had No Idea

Eating healthy is hard. Do you look at calories? Fat? Sodium? Protein? How much do I need? How much do I NOT need?

One of the most important things to look at when reading food labels actually isn’t any of these things—it’s ingredients. Experts say that the less ingredients there are, the better the food is likely going to be for you.

Additionally, it’s best to avoid added sugars, which can hiding under all sorts of names—from fructose to dextrose, molasses to corn syrup, sugar hides in all sorts of products, even the ones you least expect.

Another healthy-eating tip: You want to avoid foods that have a long list of foods and chemicals you can’t pronounce. Chances are, if you can’t recognize what it is, your body won’t be able to either!

The problem is that the food industry doesn’t make eating healthy easy at all. In fact, we’re more confused than ever thanks to a recent Facebook post by the Food Babe, a popular healthy food guru, that brought something very interesting to our attention.

“You know what you’ll find in almost every restaurant in America? Heinz Tomato Ketchup,” she started off.

That’s right—we love the sweet, tangy goodness, all over our fries or burgers. We know it’s probably not the healthiest food, but we can’t resist a dollop or ten.

But there’s a reason you can’t stop eating ketchup. The Food Babe explains that in the US, ketchup is made with high fructose corn syrup, as well as GMOs and natural flavoring, which is a recipe for addiction. “Think of this next time you’re dipping your fries in and can’t stop,” she says.

The craziest thing about this, however, is that in the UK, Heinz ketchup doesn’t have any of these ingredients.

Made with just a few ingredients (all pronounceable)—tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, salt, spices and herb extracts—ketchup is actually a relatively healthy product if you get it over there!

The US, however, contains tomato concentrate, distilled vinegar, high fructose corn syrup, salt, spice, onion powder, and natural flavoring.

But what gives? Why does the US get this more unhealthy version while the UK gets ketchup you don’t actually have to feel guilty about eating?

“If a company can get away with using cheaper ingredients, they will. It all comes down to their bottom line… at the expense of our health,” the Food Babe explains.

“The food industry doesn’t care about your health, so you really need to,” she concludes, adding the implication that this isn’t the only product where there are multiple versions.

If you’re interested in learning more about this subject matter, the Food Babe has written all about it in her book Feeding You Lies, which you can find here.

We had no idea that the same brands of foods could differ depending on the ingredients (which apparently aren’t always the same)!

If you eat ketchup often, have you ever noticed the vast difference in ingredients among different kinds, let along the same brand? Are there any other foods that you’ve noticed this in?