Heinz Looks for the Man Who Survived a Month by Eating Ketchup

Heinz Wants To Buy a New Boat for a Man Who Survived a Month at Sea by Eating Ketchup

By Regina Sienra on February 23, 2023

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Una publicación compartida por Heinz (@heinz)

Last month, a miracle took place in the Caribbean Sea. A man from Dominica named Elvis Francois was rescued after being lost at sea for nearly a month. The 47-year-old had been working on his boat in St. Maarten when the weather turned for the worse. Since he couldn't reach his friends, he realized all he could do was wait and make do with what he had at hand. “I had no food, just a bottle of ketchup that was on the boat, garlic powder and Maggi [soup],” he said at the time. After hearing his surviving-on-ketchup story, Heinz is now looking for him in hopes of getting him a new boat.

Having reached an impasse in their quest to find the man, the American company turned to an entity that has found elusive people before—social media. Heinz posted a “message in a bottle” on Instagram, pleading for help to find the so-called “ketchup boat guy.” “We need your help tracking down an amazing man with an amazing story,” the Heinz team wrote, retelling Francois' feat. “Well, Heinz wants to celebrate his safe return home and help him buy a new boat… but we can’t seem to find him.”

As of a week after the original message asking the internet for help was published, the search has continued. Heinz posted two more images since their first plea; one explaining that Francois could be in any of Dominica's 18 towns and 53 villages, and another clarifying that they've reached out to the government of Dominica and the Colombian Navy, who rescued him. They’ve been met with several impersonators, but no Francois. However, Heinz isn’t giving up. “We know he’s still out there,” the company asserts.

As the quest continues, some Dominican commentators have pointed out that the country is currently engaged in Carnival festivities. So, come the first day of Lent, they could have better luck. “Good call out! We’ll find him Wednesday,” replied Heinz to one message, adding a crying face emoji.

To stay up to date with the search for Francois, and be in the know when he finally gets his boat—which the company has said will have a state-of-the-art navigation system so he doesn't get lost again—follow Heinz on Instagram.

After being lost at sea for nearly a month, a man from Dominica named Elvis Francois revealed that all he had to eat was “a bottle of ketchup that was on the boat, garlic powder, and Maggi [soup].”

Desde el aire se estableció la ubicación del velero en emergencia que tenía la palabra “HELP” (Ayuda) grabada sobre su casco.

Se dio aviso a las unidades en tierra y mar, donde el buque mercante CMA CGM VOLTARIO se unió a la labor de rescate.#ProtegemosLaVida ⚓ pic.twitter.com/DSGZU6fdeK

— Armada de Colombia (@ArmadaColombia) January 18, 2023