Peering Into Brown Sauce

What the hell is "brown sauce," and why would anyone want to eat it?

That's one question posed by footnoted.org's Michelle Leder on Friday. McDonald's in the United Kingdom serves its Bacon Roll with a choice of ketchup (OK) or brown sauce (eww).

Another question that occurred to her as she perused McDonald's 10-K: When the company says, "Open communication and transparency is especially important to European consumers," does that mean that Americans are more apt to accept a lot of obfuscation?

Well ...

She also took a look at Coca-Cola's 10-K and found this statement: "Recent developments indicate that the United States economy is in recession and that the global economy is experiencing a slowdown."

You don't say! But, she notes, that's the only mention of the economy in Coke's 160-page filing.

Both 10-Ks, she concluded, were "about as nutritious as a visit to the drive-thru window."

By the way, "brown sauce" may sound unappetizing or unfamiliar to many Americans, but it turns out to be a sweet-and-sour kind of thing with lots of flavorings and preservatives. Here's the ingredient list:

Water, Sugar, Spirit Vinegar, Malt Vinegar (from Barley), Date Paste, Tomato Puree, Molasses, Rye Flour, Salt, Modified Maize Starch, Flavourings, Colour (E150d Sulphite Ammonia Caramel), Spices, Preservative (E202 Potassium Sorbate), Glucose, Soy Sauce (Water, Soybean, Salt, Wheat), Onion, Malt Extract.