What was once a ubiquitous green-capped condiment widely available at restaurants and stocked on supermarket shelves has become nearly impossible to find.
And as the law of supply and demand dictates, prices for one of America’s most recognizable Sriracha hot sauce brands has skyrocketed on places like ebay and Amazon. It’s been more than a year since those red bottles of Sriracha with the green caps and rooster logo manufactured by California-based Huy Fong Foods first began vanishing off store shelves.
The Sriracha shortage − caused by a dearth of the chili peppers central to the recipe of the popular hot sauce − has inspired some enterprising individuals to resell their coveted stock to those willing to spend a pretty penny to obtain a bottle… or two.
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What’s a bottle of Sriracha likely to cost me?
The price for a bottle of Huy Fong Sriracha that used to cost under $10 has drastically skyrocketed on places like ebay and Amazon, where re-sellers are taking advantage of the product being in short supply with no end in sight.
A search of ebay listings Monday morning showed that some bottles of the sauce are going for three − or even in some cases, 10 − times their original value.
In one of the more egregious examples, a 12-pack of 28-ounce bottles sold for $415 ($34.58 per bottle) after receiving 28 bids. One seller on the site was selling bottles of the same size for around $30, while another offered the product for an even more precipitous $80 a pop.
And people are willing to fork over the large sums if it means they can flavor their food with the chili sauce. A glance at completed listings on eBay reveals dozens of Huy Fong products sold after auction just since Sunday, all well above their retail prices.
One seller offering 28-ounce bottles for $32.99 had made 115 sales as of Monday morning.
Sriracha consumers won’t fare much better on Amazon, where two-packs of the 28-ounce bottles could be found Monday for $57, while one seller was even offering up two-packs of 17-ounce bottles for $99.
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What’s causing the Sriracha shortage?
Huy Fong first announced in April 2022 that the company faced a “severe shortage” of red jalapeño peppers from farms in California, New Mexico and Mexico experiencing hot temperatures and historic droughts.
Limited production resumed in the fall as the company indicated it hoped for a better harvest. But months later, the strain persists and representatives for Huy Fong said in a statement that its unclear when it will end.
“We continue to have a limited supply that continues to affect product availability,” the statement read. “We are grateful for your continued patience and understanding during this unprecedented inventory shortage. We are currently working on trying to avoid future shortages.”
Are there alternatives to Huy Fong’s Sriracha product?
USA TODAY’s Reviewed team compiled a list in 2022 of retailers where consumers can find other brands of Sriracha sauce online.
The list also included plenty of spicy alternatives with similar flavors. You can find the list here.
Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at elagatta@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @EricLagatta.
