What Really Caused the Sriracha Shortage? (2024) | Hacker News Reader

What Really Caused the Sriracha Shortage? (2024)

fortune.com

29 pointsindigodaddy25 comments

Handshake agreements will most likely fall apart in time due to changing needs and personalities. This is why contracts are absolutely needed, especially for the size of business Sriracha was involved in.

Except for the court ruling of 13 million in favor of Underwood Ranch, the article isn’t very clear in the amount by which the 2 companies disagreed so difficult to say if it was purely a clash of the 2 owner’s personalities or some other fundamental change in market that brought this sudden schism.

It seemed pretty clear to me that Tran started looking for cheaper peppers elsewhere first.

It wasn't that clear to me. Do you mean by the fact that he started the Chilico company and tried to hire Underwood's manager? That did seem a little shady, but it just seemed like there aren't enough details out in the open to know for sure. Although I suppose the 13M judgement against Huy Fong supports the case.

That was certainly my impression from the article as well.

Paranoid old men accuse each other of trying to rip each other off after decades of successful partnership. Sad.

From what I've been reading, Huy Fong Sriracha hasn't been the same since. My bottles last a very long time, so haven't had too many new bottles since 2017, but I can't say that my likely unrefined pallette has noticed a difference though..? Haven't tried the Underwood version yet either.

Underwood’s version is different, as if they weren’t trying to make a duplicate, which is unfortunate. Had they made an exact duplicate, the market would have pivoted fast to Underwood. Sriracha hasn’t been the same since. I no longer buy it. Ruined his company and product over a few additional pennies he didn’t need.

Is the Tabasco replica any good?

its gotta a very different flavor but is still pretty good.

I personally like the Lee Kum Kee brand's Sriracha and TNT brand's as well.

I buy them often. I haven’t noticed a huge difference between the two and enough time has passed that I have forgotten what the original tastes like.

Back in the 90s when I was in college, my friend brought back Sambal Asli hot sauce packets from Indonesia after holiday breaks. I think he said it meant "real sauce" but I just looked it up and it might mean "original sauce".

The funny thing about it is that you build up a tolerance to how hot it is. So the first time you try it, a few drops feel like your face is burning off. By the end of the semester, we were pouring full packets on each slice of pizza.

I just looked and I can't find the (ketchup sized) packets online. So I don't have anything to recognize the brand from. If anyone knows, please share! They are at least as addictive as Sriracha IMHO, should there ever be another shortage.

Sambal Asli is something like 2500 Scoville. That is an extremely mild level of spiciness. If you thought your face was burning off with that your spice tolerance is incredibly low.

Sure, but I think the point is that you can build up some level of spice tolerance over time. Doesn't really make sense to judge someone's spice tolerance based on before they built it up.

It’s like someone saying 80F is very cold, it’s jarring.

Funnily enough, my brain went there, too - only to derive opposite lesson. When I was a teenager I spent a summer in central America, living in mostly un-air conditioned spaces. The first few weeks were hellish, but I became gradually used to it. Then I came home, and remember 80° F, with no humidity, feeling distinctly chilly!

I think the lesson there is that subjective / comparative judgments are, well, always and irremediably subjective. It's never possible to impose an alternative frame of reference and get to a "true" answer. That's frustrating for those of us who prefer to live in the objective realm - but it's maybe comforting to recognize that these matters are objectively subjective!

one of the funniest foods ever..a vietnamese dude making a fake thai chilli sauce with mexican chillies in usa...

Sounds like you don't care for Sriracha? :)

His point is that Sriracha doesn't come from Si Racha. It's Asian food originating from the US.

I think it's a fantastic and inspiring immigrant and entrepreneurial success story, notwithstanding the recent struggles.

america in a squirt bottle

Can’t we all just get along?

For short periods of time, yes. Over longer time spans, absolutely not.

Source: all of human history.

Relevant xkcd: https://xkcd.com/592/

Footnote:

This article appears in the February/March 2024 issue of Fortune with the headline “Hot Mess.”

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