Please help. Question about food going bad :( so panicked!

[Dolly1469]

So I'm at a restaurant and I ordered some French fries and ketchup. Instead of the ketchup being in a brand name bottle it's in a red one. So I put it on my fries and it kinda was more acidic tasting than normal. I'm so panicked. I only ate 4 bites. But does ketchup actually go bad???? Wouldn't it taste really bad instead of extra acidic/sour????? Am I ok???

[NaiveAndTrue]

I think at a restaurant it's unlikely that something like ketchup would have time to spoil. It gets used up a lot. It could just be an 'off brand' that stretches it with a lot of extra vinegar or something. I wouldn't eat any more just in case, but the chances are much more likely that it isn't "spoiled" and it won't make you sick. Though it will last longer in the fridge, it's perfectly fine non-refrigerated for up to a MONTH!

[NicManri]

I don't think it's sopiled I bet it may have been an off-brand that didn't cut the acidity as much

[SilentFrog]

Ketchup is naturally very acidic and so even when it does 'go off', bacteria and viruses find it incredibly difficult to take root and survive because the acidity breaks them down. In fact would you believe ketchup can last up to 2 years past it's sell by date! It's all because of the high acid content which like I said makes it really difficult for bacteria to grow. It's like humans trying to live in the desert, it's red hot, you will easily die if you are out in the sun too long, there is no water, just sand. Eventually, the winter months will come and you come across a nice shady oasis with water, but until then, it's next to impossible to survive out there.

When ketchup does begin to go bad it begins to separate and it would be immediately obvious looking at it because you'd be squirting out sort of red water! Even at that point it's still safe to eat, although certainly not pleasant tasting. As others have said, the acidic taste is most likely due to the brand of the ketchup, or it could of course be that it was home-made and too much vinegar was added. Whichever way you look at it, I'd say the chances of you getting ill are incredibly low, if not 0%, so please try not to panic and hang on in there!

Ps. I studied food science and briefly worked as a flavour chemist so food safety is one thing I do know about!