Last week the internet was captivated (and more than slightly horrified) by the questionable Pepto Bismol-colored condiment known simply as Pink Sauce. With its unnatural hue and ambiguous flavor, it isn't hard to see why the sauce went viral on TikTok but just as quickly as it exploded in popularity it also raised a plethora of red flags. From inconsistencies in color to the laughable use of an angel number as the suggested amount of servings on the nutrition label, the dragon fruit, honey, chili and garlic concoction garnered a dubious reputation with the shocking lack of any sort of oversight.
Having made headlines for potentially all wrong reasons, the creator behind the viral sauce, Chef Pii, has addressed the controversy surrounding the condiment and may have just made matters worse for herself. Responding to questions on a TikTok live, Chef Pii touched on the issue of whether or not Pink Sauce had been FDA-approved and dismissively replied to one viewer: "What do you mean FDA-approved? I don’t sell medical products. The Pink Sauce is not a medical product. The Pink Sauce don’t contribute to your health.”
While "Pink Sauce don’t contribute to your health" may be a huge understatement, Chef Pii's seemingly fundamental misunderstanding of what the Food and Drug Administration's responsibilities are did not instill any confidence in those on the fence about the condiment. Technically speaking, she is right that the FDA doesn't slap their stamp of approval on most food stuffs — it is literally half of the entire department's purview and, as such, they have a long list of requirements and standards that all food producers must adhere to.
The FDA requires that all food manufacturers, with a few exceptions for farms and restaurants, register with them if they intend to pack and ship sauce across state lines. As previously pointed out, they also require nutrition labels to accurately reflect the ingredients contained within the product and recommended serving size making the aforementioned "444 servings" and misspelling of vinegar an issue.
Chef Pii's latest comments are rather strange given that she previously claimed they "are following the FDA standard." Feeling vindicated in their doubt of the self-professed "infamous" sauce, many ran with the TikTok cook's balking at the notion of FDA approval to get "F in FDA" trending as a result. Whether the FDA actually ends up intervening in the whole Pink Sauce debacle remains to be seen.
\u201c\u201cwhat do you mean FDA APPROVED?\u201d\n\nY\u2019all look \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d\u201d— Life w/ Derek (@Life w/ Derek) 1658788563
\u201cthis woman not knowing what the F in FDA means is not shocking, but i can not be the only person who caught this on the Pink Sauce label\u201d— \ud83d\udc7d\ud83d\udc7d\ud83d\udc7d (@\ud83d\udc7d\ud83d\udc7d\ud83d\udc7d) 1658802630
\u201cOH BROTHER...... Y'all seriously bought that sauce from a woman who don't even know the F in FDA stands for FOOD????\u201d— Que (@Que) 1658796616
\u201cThe 'F' in FDA stands for Food\u201d— UberFacts (@UberFacts) 1658800725
\u201cTwitter: F in FDA \nEveryone: Pink Sauce Lady \nMe:\u201d— \uff24\uff21\uff36\uff25 (@\uff24\uff21\uff36\uff25) 1658813625
\u201c\u201cSo you didn\u2019t realize the F in FDA stood for Food?\u201d\u201d— Friars Faithful \u270a\ud83c\udfffKdot (@Friars Faithful \u270a\ud83c\udfffKdot) 1658825787
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