With the rising cost of everyday products some shoppers have started questioning just how much quality they’re getting for their money on branded goods. Most recently, TikTok users have been pointing out the steep rise in price for household favourite Heinz tomato ketchup.
The price of the popular condiment has doubled in in the last year with some Tesco stores in the UK selling it for as much as £4.40. According to wholesaler publication, The Grocer, the 910g bottle of Heinz tomato ketchup has risen by 60% from £2.49 to £3.99.
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Last year Heinz tried to increase the prices of their products in Tesco but that led to a dispute and several weeks of empty shelves after the retailer refused to accept Heinz’s “unjustifiable” price hike in the midst of surging inflation. This time however it seems there has been no such backlash and it leaves the consumer in a familiar situation of deciding where and how to cut costs.
So, should you continue forking out for a bottle of the nation's favourite or are there better, tastier cheaper alternatives? I tasted all the own-brand versions of ketchup at UK supermarkets to see how they compare.
Price
I managed to find only two bottles that were under £1, Aldi's Bramwell's original tomato ketchup came at a generous 65p while Asda's own original tomato ketchup was just 10p more at 75p. Tesco's version was the third cheapest at £1.25, then Sainsbury's own at £1.45. Morrison's own and Daddies ketchup bought at Asda were the closest in price to Heinz, Asda's own was just £1.99 and Daddies set me back £2.
The taste test
Tesco's own was sweet if a little watery. The lightest red of the bottles, it looked and tasted more like tomato soup than tomato ketchup and didn't have the thick consistency you look for in condiments.
Sainsbury's ketchup was he darkest hue of red. It had a mixture of the tangiest and sweetest taste out of all the bottles and was a little overpowering.
It was not the tastiest but definitely the thickest in consistency however.
Daddies was perhaps the most flavoursome as it tasted the most like tomato puree which I love. The puree comparisons don't stop there as it also had good consistency and with a decent sized bottle it might be a new favourite of mine.
There's no denying the quality of the Heinz's ketchup. The one with the most balance in it's ingredients it wasn't too sweet, or too savoury and the consistency of the ketchup was nice and firm.
However, it didn't taste too dissimilar to what Daddies or Sainsbury own ketchup was offering. In fact, you can add Aldi's Bramwell's to the list of favourites for me too.
Next to Heinz it offered the most balance in ingredients and it was hard for me to tell them apart despite several tests.
Morrisons and Asda's version get a similar review due to the striking similarities in taste for me. Both were most disappointing of the seven.
I could barely smell the ingredients when I opened the bottles and the taste of both failed to illicit any type of reaction from my taste buds. Bland and uninspiring.
The verdict
Of course it all comes down to a matter of taste and preference but there really isn't that much difference in quality between the ketchups. With soaring prices where you put your pennies matters more than ever and with there being not much of a difference it doesn't hurt to save that extra quid for something cheaper and just as tasty.
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