Pink Sauce
Pink Sauce is a pink dipping sauce created by TikTok user Veronica Shaw, better known by her screen name, Chef Pii. The sauce went viral on TikTok in the summer of 2022, with the hashtag #pinksauce gaining over 680 million views. The product gained notoriety over food safety and labeling concerns. History 
Chef Pii revealed the Pink Sauce in a TikTok video on June 11, 2022, and subsequently began fulfilling orders for the sauce. Customers noticed inconsistencies in the ingredient list, with many raising concerns that the sauce may cause botulism. TikTok users also pointed out that the sauce was not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The product was revised for safety purposes and went back on sale on July 1, 2022. It sold out sometime around August 3, 2022. Chef Pii planned to mass-produce the sauce in the fall of 2022. On January 11, 2023, following a reformulation of the recipe and packaging redesign to adhere to Food and Drug Administration regulations, Pink Sauce was made available in 4,000 Walmart locations across the United States. Controversy
The sauce garnered controversy due to food safety and labeling concerns. Customers noted that the sauce's color varied between batches, the product was poorly packaged, and that the sauce contained milk which, when packaged in a bag, could be infected by botulism. There were also discrepancies between the amount of sauce in the bottle and the amount specified on the label, and allegations that the sauce contained ingredients which were not included on the label (such as mayonnaise). Some consumers experienced food poisoning and were hospitalized. Others reported that the product smelled and appeared rotten. One TikTok user faked their death after consuming Pink Sauce as a "social experiment to see how quickly other people could spread misinformation". On August 21, 2022, YouTuber MatPat made a video about the Pink Sauce on the "Food Theorists" YouTube channel, claiming the ingredients list was unrealistic and that the portions listed on the label were inaccurate. He recommended not consuming the sauce due to potential health risks. Response from Chef Pii 
Chef Pii claimed that she had never weighed the product, so the discrepancy between the amount of sauce indicated on the label and the amount actually in the bottle was due to guesswork. When asked whether her product was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, she stated that her product is not a "medical product", causing further backlash from commenters who pointed out that the Food and Drug Administration is responsible for regulating food. In October 2022, Chef Pii appeared on Karamo Brown's talk show, Karamo, to address the controversies surrounding her sauce. She appeared alongside fellow TikTok user Alle Brean, a critic of the sauce who had sent a sample to a lab for testing. While the mistake in labeling was acknowledged, Chef Pii did not address concerns over the shipment of perishable ingredients. Chef Pii criticized Brean for her commentary on the sauce, and accused Brean of "fabricating" claims about her product to "tear down [Chef Pii's] business and livelihood". The results of Brean's commissioned lab test were never presented during the segment. Chef Pii's response on the show was met with backlash and the episode was deleted. Chef Pii later apologized to Brean through a private message on TikTok. In August 2023, Shaw claimed that she was sabotaged and broke, and started a GoFundMe page to raise $100,000. FDA approval 

On August 2, 2022, the Food and Drug Administration opened an investigation into the Pink Sauce. Chef Pii collaborated with Dave's Gourmet to address concerns surrounding the recipe and packaging. The reformulated product received approval by the Food and Drug Administration and was made available in Walmart stores in January 2023. GoFundMe Page 
On August 16, 2023, Chef Pii made a GoFundMe page alleging that Dave's Gourmet did not pay her royalties for The Pink Sauce and that she is financially struggling, living off twenty dollars a day. As a result, she started a crowdfunding page with a goal of $100,000 in order to get money to take care of her kids. Dave's Gourmet claims that they have only been paying her what is on the contract, that being so far $120,000. She says she is also facing eviction from her apartment. Currently her GoFundMe is at $25,454 out of the $100,000 required. On August 28, 2023, the page received backlash after it was discovered that Chef Pii had been untruthful about her current situation at the time. References 

American condiments
Culture of Miami
Florida cuisine
Food and drink introduced in 2022
Food safety scandals
Internet memes introduced in 2022
Sauces
TikTok