Eureka! Science is finally solving ‘the ketchup problem’

Scientists have wrestled with one of the most troubling conundrums facing mankind – and won.

Science iis finally winning the battle of how to get every last drop of ketchup out of the bottle – and the solution could be on sale soon.

Scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) say that the secret isn’t wiggling the bottle in some mysterious way – it’s a new coating, which makes bottle interiors slippery.

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The coating is slick, like an oily floor – and is so slippery that liquids slide out without leaving a trace.

The liquid-solid coating is being developed by start-up Liquiglide by the MIT scientists behind the breakthrough – who secured £12 million in funding this January.

The researchers say that it could also work on toothpaste, cosmetics and even super-sticky substances such as glue.

The container is coated inside with a rough surface – then it’s coated with a thin solid layer, and then finally a liquid layer which fills in the troughs.

Prof Kripa Varanasi, who worked on the coating, told the BBC, ‘The cool thing about it is that because the coating is a composite of solid and liquid, it can be tailored to the product. So for food, we make the coating out of food-based materials and so you can actually eat it.’