It’s ketchup, but not as we know it: Heinz trials tomatoes grown in ‘Martian soil’

Heinz has developed a new ketchup, but not as we know it. This one has been made with tomatoes grown in out-of-this-world conditions – the equivalent, it says, of Martian soil.

Heinz’s Marz Edition tomato ketchup follows the launch last week of Heinz’s Christmas Dinner Big Soup. That special edition product – or extravagant publicity stunt if you’re cynical – sold out fast, after just 500 cans were made available in the UK for purchase online only.

Perhaps inspired by the film The Martian – in which a stranded Matt Damon survives on Mars for 18 months by growing potatoes he and his crew had brought with them for a Thanksgiving meal – Heinz and the Aldrin Space Institute at Florida Institute of Technology set out to discover if it was possible to grow ketchup-worthy tomatoes in the conditions of the red planet. Could it, in other words, become the red-sauce planet?

They analysed the soil conditions, developed techniques for crops to grow, and succeeded in producing tomatoes good enough to make ketchup with. They then sent a bottle of the Martian ketchup on a celebratory high-altitude flight that reached 37km – a bit more than a third of the way to space, and more than three times as high as commercial airliners fly – where temperatures drop to -70 degrees.

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The Irish aeronautical engineer Dr Norah Patten, who has trained as an astronaut, says, "Space exploration is all about pushing innovation, increasing collaboration, advancing research and development and looking for many ways that we can use these to benefit life here on Earth. What I love about this Heinz on Marz project is the potential implication to advance our understanding of food production."

Cristina Kenz, Kraft Heinz International’s chief growth officer, says, “We’re so excited that our team of experts have been able to grow tomatoes in unknown conditions from another planet and share our creation with the world. From analysing the soil from Martian conditions two years ago to harvesting now, it’s been a journey.”