4/5 Rotten Tomatoes Mash-Up (Literally): Catch-up with Ketchup - 'Signs' of the Pandemic

Complimentary Condiments, no more:  We got used to seeing the sign "one per customer" in the isle where the hand sanitizer and other PPE products (abbreviations and products heretofore not part of our daily usage) were located, then TP, but has now been moved to the...condiment section, specifically KETCHUP! And now a second sign indicating "ketchup only upon request and only one per burger" as there is a run on ketchup, the newest 'essential product' whose supply line has been stretched to the point where, well, ketchup has been found to be a bit 'runny' (remember the commercials featuring the dreaded runny type versus the one that is so thick it only comes out with a few strong taps, which became the name brand)...

Falling beHeinz the Demand: Heinz and other ketchup makers have openly acknowledged they are currently having a hard time keeping up with demand. Part of the reason, they explain, is the recent increase in consumption of certain foods (whether at home or your local fast food drive-by, as the indoor "dining rooms" have been closed until just recently) that pair well with this condiment we have long taken for granted, whose main ingredients are tomatoes (you say "tomato" and I say "tomato")--sugar, vinegar, salt, spices, and 'other' seasonings (the 'other' is where I have fun in concocting home spun variations with which I experiment on my barbecue guests). It goes well with burgers and, unless you are an orthodox wiener consumer (i.e., mustard only, please)--HOT DOGS! Both with fries, of course. And in a whole range of recipes. In addition to the supply chain being stretched due to a quantitative demand, ketchup has also realized a 'qualitative' shift to smaller packages, given the increase in the 'bottle hesitancy' crowd (who wants to touch a bottle others have handled with OR without gloves and risk COVID cooties?!) Thus, there has been an increase in demand for smaller packages, the ones we have heretofore requested at the counter or drive-through window, only to end up throwing away--no more! Do you recall I shared with you early in the pandemic the job security for those pursuing careers in supply chain (or "logistics") and packaging would experience as a result of this pandemic? Oh, one last Wiki detail regarding ketchup has to do with place(s) of origin: United States and China...speaking of China (which we do often now)...

Kiddo Catch-Up: Literally five minutes after hearing about the ketchup catch-up, I was treated to an article detailing China loosening the reins on the 'One Child' rule, even encouraging couples of childbearing age to consider having more than one kiddo to add to the ? billions, apparently due to a need for an larger (?!) workforce and demand for products, among other things, KETCHUP! See the connection, can you follow the red, runny line that goes from here all the way to there, and back again? Can you appreciate the mash-up of catch-up stories? You're welcome! Now, I gotta run myself, to go and plant tomatoes... 


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