Heinz Just Reacted To The Guy Who Survived On Ketchup For 24 Days

As we all know, ketchup is great for a lot of things: dipping fries, enjoying a hot dog or burger, or even cleaning copper pans. Like other condiments, ketchup is flavorful, including ingredients like vinegar, salt, sugar, spices, and, of course, tomatoes. All that being said, probably not too many of us would want to eat straight-up ketchup for all of our meals for a month straight.

However, sailor Elvis Francois's life depended on just that after strong currents washed his boat out to sea in December. According to AP News, Francois had been "making repairs" off the coast of an island in the Caribbean, and as such, did not have much in the way of food aboard his boat.

Over the course of the next 24 days, Francois drifted more than five hundred miles to where he was eventually rescued, some 100 miles off the coast of Colombia's La Guajira Peninsula. And how did he survive all this time, if he didn't have actual food with him? You guessed it — by eating ketchup. Well, ketchup, garlic powder, and seasoning cubes. Important ingredients to always have in your kitchen, but apparently also on your boat.

This sailor's story touched Heinz's ketchupy heart

It's hard not to be affected by stories of perseverance, like that of Elvis Francois. Not only did he survive being lost at sea for 24 days, but he did so alone and he ate only ketchup, garlic powder, and seasoning cubes. What's more, AP News reported that Francois used a piece of cloth to collect rainwater to drink (as humans can't drink salt water) and even attempted to signal for help with a mirror.

Upon being rescued in mid-January, Francois was forced to abandon his boat — and this is precisely where Heinz, the beloved ketchup manufacturer, comes into play. On February 14, Heinz posted on Instagram that it was searching for Francois in hopes of "[celebrating] his safe return home]" with a brand new boat. Though the ketchup company has yet to find Francois, thousands of people have banded together to help, spreading his story far and wide along the way. One thing is for sure: Whether or not Francois gets a new boat from Heinz, he has the world's support behind him.