You Thought Burke’s Habanero Hot Sauce was Hot? The Global Hot Sauce Market is Even Hotter (if that’s possible)!

Hot sauce traditionally has been associated with spicy cuisines like Mexican or Asian dishes. When asking for hot sauce at a restaurant, typically a bottle of Tabasco or Cholula would be placed on the table for your dousing pleasure. What was a fond memory of going out to eat and ordering hot sauce with a meal has now grown into a diverse variety of spicy sauces available right from your fridge. Over the last decade the hot sauce market has exploded to a refrigerator staple added to any dish morning, noon, and night and a key ingredient to the many recipes in the rotation of our culinary repertoire.

Facts & Factors just released a research report this month indicating the hot sauce market will grow in revenue from around US $2.75 Billion in 2020 and reach US $4.91 Billion by 2026, with North America expected to see the largest market share increase in terms of global revenue collection. 

What’s driving this sales expansion? From a consumer perspective factors include the rising popularity of spicy and umami flavored food and rising consumer preference for consuming exotic and innovative cuisine. Other contributors include the growing purchasing power of millennials and their love of hot sauce.  With a focus on fresh food choices for meals, millennials have displayed a penchant for sauce to liven up their meals, create variety throughout the week of meals and satisfy their flavor-seeking taste buds.

On the production side of the equation, the types of hot sauces have also swelled beyond your mainstream, run-of-the-mill tabasco pepper sauce, habanero pepper sauce, jalapeño pepper sauce, sweet and spicy sauce. The derivations of these base types are limitless providing the variety consumers are desiring to drive sales. And while the tabasco segment is expected to see the largest market share increase pursuant to the Facts & Factors study noted above, the sweet & spicy sauce segment is expected to witness the fastest growth.

In addition to an increase in the types of hot sauces sold, the producers in the global hot sauce market have significantly increased as well. Production in this market segment is not limited to big commercial players but includes craft and private label hot sauce manufacturers as well.  So not only will you see a plethora of hot sauces in your local supermarket but specialty small batch producers are showing up at your local gourmet grocer, farmers markets & artisan fairs as well as selling directly to foodies and local communities online. Splinter businesses selling curated hot sauce boxes & bottle bundles and hosting Hot Sauce festivals, fairs and contests have also taken off leading to the increase in hot sauce popularity. 

So grab another bottle of Burke’s Hot Sauce and be part of the burgeoning trend!