Heinz plays ketchup with the shampoo market

Following the success of its plastic top down ketchup bottle, introduced in June 2003 on its 570g tomato ketchup variant, Heinz has decided to extend the concept to all sizes of plastic tomato ketchup bottles. It has also reshaped the bottle to give it a more iconic shape.

The top down concept -- borrowed from the shampoo market -- offers consumer benefits such as enabling all the ketchup to be removed easily from the bottle without the customary shaking, slapping or trying to balance it upside down.

Brand manager Mat Bird said: "We know that people turn their ketchup bottles upside down when they are nearly empty, and the ketchup can congeal in the cap. This led us to turn the bottle on its head and introduce a valve that both keeps the cap clean and gives consumers better control when they squeeze."

Avoiding mess was one issue found to be of high priority among consumers during test-marketing.

The new polyproplyene bottle, designed by packaging consultancy Jones Knowles Ritchie, has a new shape and more prominent eyebrows and facets, as found on the glass bottle, and the famous 57 has been embossed on the front and back. The new valve technology, also used in the personal care market, had to be adapted for each different bottle size.

A glass bottle variant will still be available for the 10% of consumers who prefer it.

The 460g, 570g and 700g plastic bottles are being replaced as we go to press and the 1kg and 1.35kg bottles will go top down in March 2005. The more expensive bottle means a price rise, for example, the 700g variant will rise to £1.39.