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Apples in ketchup

The basis of ketchup is initially freshtomatoes or tomatoes, which were wiped and boiled to the state of the paste. This part of ketchup is the most valuable, as in tomatoes contains a large amount of lycopene - a substance with strong anticancer properties. However, most modern manufacturers are trying to save on the manufacture of ketchup, adding to the tomato base apple sauce. It acts as a thickener and filler at the expense of its natural polysaccharides (pectins), which have the property of thickening foods and increasing their shelf life. Thanks to the use of apple puree in ketchup, manufacturers can not add harmful synthetic preservatives to it. Besides the above properties, apple puree makes it possible to significantly reduce the cost of production of ketchup, since tomatoes cost more than apples. As a result, brands can increase the volume of products and increase the cost of ketchup in the consumer market. GOST does not prohibit such manipulations, allowing the addition of vegetable purees, as well as flavors, dyes, preservatives, sweeteners and flavor stabilizers.

Categories of ketchups

To learn the composition of ketchup, allowed by GOST, you canfrom the categories indicated on the label. They are divided into four groups: extra, higher, first and second. The higher the above category, the greater the tomato base ketchup and the less the various additives in the form of fruit and vegetable purees. Under the category "extra" is the most natural ketchup, made from fresh tomatoes, tomato puree or tomato paste, but such products are rare. To the category of "higher" are ketchup, in which cheap apple sauce and various food additives are added. Also in the highest category can include ketchup, not containing vegetable or fruit puree. The category "first" includes products containing only 6% of the tomato base, while popular apple purees and thickeners with additives are represented in it quite widely. And finally, the "second" category include ketchup, in which 4.5% of dry tomato paste is added, and the bulk is made from apple puree. In fact, the products of the second category is a chemical product of the economy class, containing a large number of different food additives, giving it a characteristic taste, a thick consistency and bright red tomato.