They got the name from a FISH sauce and their slogan from a shoe shop…the incredible story behind Heinz Tomato Ketchup and how that iconic bottle has changed in 140 years

WHEN you think tomato sauce, you think of the iconic Heinz sauce - and now photos reveal just how much the famous ketchup bottle has changed over the decades as the condiment celebrates its 140th birthday.

Heinz comes from very humble beginnings, originally launched in America in 1876 and then in the UK a decade later.

But now, more than a century on, 650 million bottles and 11 billion sauce sachets of tomato sauce are sold every years in more than 140 countries - enough for every person on the planet.

The people over at Heinz headquarters have delved into their archives and pulled out some of their most iconic photos and advertisements over the years.

One advert from 1931 proudly states the condiment is made "in clean kitchens" while another, from 1922, pictures a young boy holding a punnet of tomatoes next to the words "Makes great things taste better".

The most recent one in the archive dates from 1963 - the year the Vietnam War ended - which recommends the ketchup to customers by using the slogan '1st with the Services too!'

The photos even take us back through a look at the historic glass bottles they used to distribute the sauce we have been lovingly dipping our chips in for years.

But it is not just advertisements and iconic bottles that have been revealed today.

The secret behind the iconic '57 varieties' has also been revealed.

Heinz Tomato Ketchup was founded by American businessman Henry John Heinz.

But this wasn't his first product - he began making horseradish sauce based on his mothers recipe in 1869.

But when that folded he called on his brother, John Heinz, and his cousin, Frederick Heinz.

The trio opened a factory in Ohio and developed the ketchup - called Catsup at the time.

And where did their inspiration come from?

A Chinese fermented fish sauce called Koe-chiap.

Then there is the tale behind the choice for '57 varieties'.

Any true Heinz fan will know that the number 57 has nothing to do with the number of products they sell.

According to the Heinz website, Henry Heinz was riding a train in New York City back in 1896 when he saw a sign advertising 21 styles of shoes, which he thought was clever.

So, although Heinz was already manufacturing more than 60 products at the time, Henry thought 57 was a lucky number, so he began using it in all their advertising.

By 1907, Heinz was producing 12 million bottles of ketchup per year, exporting it all over the world, including Australia, South America, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa and the UK.

Sales boomed despite the death of Henry J Heinz in May 1919 at the age of 74 until the interruption of World War Two, when tomato supplies were cut off to the British ketchup factory in Harlesden - leaving Brits to rely on Heinz Salad Cream instead.

It took nine years before ketchup was back on the shelves.

Today, the iconic company sells more than 5,700 products across the globe but still uses that magic number.

Heinz produces it own tomato seeds through traditional techniques, grown in the Mediterranean and California.