It used to be a big deal to brag that you were from Pittsburgh, hometown of Heinz ketchup.

Soon we'll be able to say we're from Pittsburgh, home of the Heinz "International Center of Excellence for Ketchup, Condiments & Sauces."

The center is part of the Heinz Global Food Innovation and Quality Center, a 100,000-square-foot facility on the Marconi Communications campus in Marshall that is to officially open with some fanfare Monday morning.

H.J. Heinz Co. Chairman, President and CEO William R. Johnson and local officials are to be on hand to show off the place, also known as the Heinz Food IQ Center.

According to the company's annual report, it "will be Heinz's global hub for research, hosting more than 100 chefs, food technologists, researchers and package designers, plus experts in nutrition, cuisine and quality assurance."

This is a consolidation of quality assurance and research, as research staffers were moved from the North Side buildings that were sold to Del Monte Foods Co. about three years ago.

Heinz ketchup, condiments and sauces actually are no longer made here, said Heinz spokesperson Debbie Foster. But this region remains the company's heart and, with this new center, brain.

The center is the headquarters for a multinational task force that works in tomato-rich sections of the globe, from California to Australia. As Foster explains, "They study every asset of the tomato," from crop yields to levels of lycopene, a potent antioxidant.

The new center even has a small "pilot shop," or miniature factory, for making test batches, which can be tested by organaleptic specialists -- experts on flavor, aroma and texture.