Why Does McDonald's Ketchup Taste So Different From Heinz?

Ever wondered why that McDonald’s cheeseburger seems to be on its own level when satisfying your cravings? It could all come down to its delicious, proprietary ketchup. But hang on. Why does McDonald’s ketchup taste different from brands like Heinz?

Mike Haracz, a former executive chef for McDonald’s, went on TikTok to answer that very question, posed by one of his followers, as well as debunk the theory that the fast food chain is putting honey in its ketchup. 

“If you go on the McDonald’s website and look under their burgers and look at the ingredients statement of the ketchup on their burgers and compare that to Heinz, it is almost identical,” Haracz explains in his TikTok. “However, Heinz looks like it has some added ingredients.”

According to the McDonald's website, its ketchup is made from "Tomato Concentrate From Red Ripe Tomatoes, Distilled Vinegar, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Corn Syrup, Water, Salt, and Natural Flavors." Meanwhile, the recipe on the back of the Heinz bottle includes all of the above, plus onion powder and an unnamed spice. Since neither of the recipes shares precisely how much of each ingredient is used, it's entirely possible that the proportions play a role in the different tastes too.

Those additions, Haracz adds, could make Heinz “more flavorful,” and that it’s “up to you to decide whether it’s better or not, but the ingredients statements are almost identical, and I guarantee neither of them are putting honey in their ketchup.” 

This isn’t the only one of Haracz’s videos to go viral of late. He regularly delights his followers by revealing the chain’s secrets on the regular, including sharing the best — and worst — times to visit each store for the fastest service.