Low scotch bonnet crops puts the heat on suppliers

Jamaica’s scotch bonnet production is so low that it has caused a shortage of output of hot pepper sauce.

Hot pepper sauce in the Caribbean is a staple of dining tables region wide, the obligatory accompaniment for rice and peas, curries, salt fish fritters and stews.

And as international palates continue to appreciate the taste, a growing number of brands are exported globally appearing on the shelves of major supermarket chains.

But a shortage of scotch bonnets used to create the quintessential Caribbean condiment is stifling supply, while sending costs for the region’s producers soaring.

Through extreme weather, disease and pests scotch bonnet peppers are now hard to source, manufacturers say.

Last October’s Hurricane Melissa – the strongest in Jamaica’s history – decimated the island’s agricultural sector, while it was still recovering from Hurricane Beryl the year before. This has reduced the output by such hot sauce companies like Walkerswood and Gray’s Peppers.

Antiguan producer Novella Payne who cooks up a range of sauces, syrups and jams under her Granma Aki label is affected too. To avoid the high prices of scotch bonnets, she also uses locally grown Moruga scorpion peppers, which are native to Trinidad. “They give it a nice flavour,” she said.