Boston Ketchup Rebellion

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Dear Friends,

Iowa State Rep. Josh Turek (D-Council Bluffs)

LISTEN TO THIS WEEK’S PROGRAM, with Charles Goldman co-hosting:

(02:00) An interview with Rep. Josh Turek;
(19:52) Fallout from conflicting abortion rulings;
(38:53) The environmental cost of bitcoin mining;
(53:34) Boston Ketchup Rebellion, with Kathy Byrnes.

I’d never met Josh Turek til he rolled into our studio this week. And yes, “rolled.” Josh is the first permanently disabled Iowan to serve in the Iowa Legislature. He’s also a two-time gold-medal-winning Paralympian, and he just won his first election by six votes.

If you’re one of those folks who think your vote doesn’t matter, let that sink in — SIX VOTES!

What impressed me most about Josh was his grasp of issues and politics. We discuss cuts to SNAP benefits, legalizing raw milk, gun laws, and restricting eminent domain to build CO2 pipelines. We also discuss what it’s going to take to make the Democratic Party relevant again in Iowa. Big topic. More on that next week.

“So,” you’re wondering, “what does any of that have to do with ketchup?”

Garden meal served with Kathy’s homemade ketchup. Yum!

Nothing. But every once in awhile, a story that’s not life-and-death catches my attention. Thus today’s subject: Boston Ketchup Rebellion.

Fenway Park is the famed home of the Boston Red Sox. One of only nine MLB parks not named after a corporation, Fenway is also the only park named after a natural area, referencing a nearby “fen,” or marsh. How cool is that?

Like most major league sports fans, Fenway patrons love over-priced junk food. Recently, Fenway’s concession vendor, True Made Foods, revamped the park’s ketchup with a sugar-free alternative. Abe Kamarck, the company’s CEO, describes conventional ketchup as “red sugar,” and figured out how to make a decent product sweetened with carrots and squash.

Well, calling it a “decent product” is, apparently, a matter of opinion. A whole lot of Fenway fans beg to differ.

One fan tweeted: “It’s gross. Bringing my own ketchup packets to the game so I can eat a hot dog and enjoy it.”

Another tweeted: “I poured out a big pile of Heinz ketchup onto a plate for my wife and son so they weren’t subjected to the ketchup abomination they serve in the Fenway stands. It’s that bad. … If I’m ordering a hot dog and french fries at the ballpark, I’m not looking for the healthy condiment choice.”

True Made Food’s response: “Families should be able to go and enjoy a ball game without ‘poisoning’ themselves with high-fructose corn syrup. We’re not replacing hotdogs with broccoli, we’re providing a way to keep the whole experience without the poison.”

Health food nut-job that I am, I’ve gotta go with the discontented fans on this one. To describe conventional ketchup as “poison” is way over the top. My wife, Kathy, makes ketchup from our tomatoes. She adds a bit of sugar. It’s dang good stuff.

Kathy dug a bit deeper into the history of ketchup and learned some interesting things:

  • The original sauce that ketchup derived from contained neither tomatoes nor sugar.
  • The first European name was “ketchup” and likely comes from either a Chinese sauce called “ke-chiap” or Indonesian “Kitjiap.” Both were made from fish. Bleh!
  • In the late 1700s, Europeans finally realized tomatoes were edible, and they eventually found their way into that fishy sauce from the Orient.
  • In 1876, some guy named Heinz started making ketchup with brown sugar and vinegar, and that set the standard for today’s “poisonous red sugar,” as Mr. Kamarck styles it.

To be clear, I commend foodie folk for innovative options to the over-salted, over-sugared, over-fatty foods that are, quite frankly, killing us. So, thanks, Abe, for trying to take ketchup to the next level. On behalf of Red Sox fans, keep trying.

Thanks for reading, listening, and taking action. Like what you hear and read? Send a donation our way to help keep things rolling. Our work isn’t funded by big corporations or foundation grants. We rely on you!

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Ed Fallon