Should Ketchup Be Refrigerated? Heinz Weighs in on the Debate

"You stick to production and I’ll deal with consumption,” one passionate customer told Heinz

Condiment enthusiasts are up in arms about whether or not ketchup should be stored in the fridge. On Tuesday, the Heinz U.K. Twitter account tweeted the company’s hard stance on where the tomato-based condiment belongs.

“FYI: Ketchup. goes. in. the. fridge!!!” the brand wrote in a short but heavily punctuated tweet.

Users were quick to comment on the brand’s recommended storage spot. One follower responding, “No it doesn’t. You stick to production and I’ll deal with consumption.”

Another user weighed in with their own take saying, “If it was meant to be in the fridge, they’d put it there at supermarkets.”

One adamant follower told the Heinz UK Twitter account, “Never, ever has it gone in my fridge, nor anybody elses.😠” Heinz responded simply saying, “It does and they do. Case (fridge) closed.”

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To help put an end to the debate, Heinz tweeted out a poll nearly 24 hours after sharing the evidently controversial opinion. “Where do you keep yours? It has to be… in the fridge!” the poll’s prompt reads.

On Thursday, at nearly 9,000 votes, about 60% of poll participants agree with the condiment company and believe ketchup should be stored in the fridge. However, the vocal minority isn’t too far off, as the remaining 40% of voters said ketchup belongs in the cupboards.

Like the previous tweet, this follow-up was met with a lot of insights from Twitter users and ketchup consumers.

“It’s not in the fridge at restaurants (opened containers sit on tables),” one user stated,

It's true diners and restaurants keep bottles out — but the turnover rate at a restaurant is much quicker than a regular customer consumes at home.

Heinz US did not immediately respond to a request for comment from PEOPLE, but the bottle labels in the U.S. clearly state "For Best Results, Refrigerate After Opening."

In 2017, Heinz responded to a similar poll started on Twitter surrounding the hot-button issue of ketchup storage.

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“Because of its natural acidity, Heinz Ketchup is shelf-stable,” the brand said. This explains why the product is not found in the refrigerated section of your grocery store. However, the brand maintained that consumers should “refrigerate after opening to maintain product quality.“

In the past, some stars have even weighed in with their opinion on the best way to store ketchup.

In Aug. 2019, Cardi B tweeted out her opinion: “People who put their ketchup in the fridge are not to be trusted.”

In a July 2018 video, Jennifer Lopez appeared on the dating-app Tinder’s YouTube channel to swipe on potential matches for a fan.

“If you store your ketchup in the fridge, we’re not going to work out,” the Delola founder reads on a potential match’s profile.

She looks up to the camera with a blank look on her face before swatting the air saying, “bye bye him" — and the fan swipes left on the romantic hopeful.

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