$70 a Bottle! Sriracha Prices Are On Fire Amid Shortage Linked To Droughts In Mexico

The droughts in Mexico are affecting chili production, which is behind the shortage as well as the rising prices of your favourite sriracha sauce, according to reports. Some resellers on platforms like Amazon and eBay are listing the bottle at astounding prices. One of the sellers addressed the sauce as Rooster Sauce (a reference to their logo) and sold the bottle for $30 plus shipping, per Fox Business. Another seller sold single 9-ounce bottles for $26.98, a 17-pack for $54.49 and a 28-ounce pack of two for $71.99, per the outlet.

How Long Will The Sriracha Shortage Last?

Californian-based Huy Fong Foods said that the shortage could last all summer till September in a letter sent to wholesale buyers. The company noted that it will not be getting any more orders before September because it won't have sufficient inventory to ship the orders. So if you can't find it on the shelves of department stores there is a good chance that you might have to wait a few months before you could buy it once again.

Can I Rely On The Resellers?

It's getting harder and harder to find with each passing day. So, if you think that you can get your hand on legitimate sriracha sauce online, then now might be a good time to hoard some hot sauce. However, there is a good chance that you might only find close duplicates but not the original sauce.

Gena Cox, a psychologist and executive coach, called herself a 'sriracha hoarder' who would not pay $30 for it. She stocked up on the iconic sauce ever since she heard of the shortage in 2022 and now has a sufficient supply of it. Others like Caleb Chen from Nevada, who runs a cannabis review website, told Fox Business he would buy a $30 bottle of sriracha "in a pinch".

Are There Any Sriracha Alternatives?

If you can't get your hands on sriracha, you could always make do with Tabasco Pepper Sauce, Tabasco Sriracha Sauce, Tapatio hot sauce, Louisiana hot sauce and Choluta hot sauce. 

Climate Change Behind Shortage of This Hot Sauce?

This is not the first time that the hindrance in Mexican chili production created a shortage of hot sauce. Mexican pepper is sensitive to weather conditions. The region that is known for growing good-quality sriracha is facing a mega-drought, the worst in more than 1,200 years. 

"These red jalapeños are only grown during the first four months of the year, and they need very controlled conditions, particularly constant irrigation,” Guillermo Murray Tortarolo, a climate and ecosystems researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico told NPR. This was worsened by two consecutive La Niña that the region experienced.

La Niña is an atmospheric phenomenon that is a colder version of El Nino. The phenomenon makes the regions warmer and drier and affects crops to quite an extent. 

Other Foods Impacted By Climate Change

Agriculture is a crucial part of the US economy. Crops and other livestock add more than $300 billion to the nation's economy each year. A study by the United States Environmental Protection Agency found that rising CO2 can also deplete the nutritional value of any food crop including soybeans, rice and wheat by reducing the concentration of protein and other minerals in most plants.

The study notes how it can dictate food shortages and reduce access to quality food on an international scale. The impact that climate change causes on the global food supply will also affect the prices internally.