Heinz sets out to build a better ketchup packet

The act of eating fries just got a bit more complicated, or easier, depending on how you feel about ketchup packets.

At the tail end of last week, H.J. Heinz Co. unveiled a “Dip and Squeeze” packet/cup hybrid that allows for squeezing from one end and dipping from the other. It looks like the progeny of a McDonald’s sauce container and a traditional ketchup packet.

It’s been in the works for at least two years. The new packets will be rolled out nationwide this fall — they’re already in test markets in the Midwest (anybody seen any in Wichita?) and the Southeast. Heinz is not abandoning its traditional packaging, just testing alternatives. The market is too big for radical change — the company sells 11 million cases of ketchup packets a year.