Ed Currie

Ed Currie (born 1963) is an American chili pepper breeder who is the founder and president of the PuckerButt Pepper Company. He is best known for breeding the Carolina Reaper which was the hottest chili pepper in the world until, in 2023, Pepper X, also bred by Currie, took over as the hottest chili pepper, as recognized by Guinness World Records.[1][2][3]

Ed Currie bred the Carolina Reaper (shown above) and Pepper X, both world-record holding chili peppers at different points.

Background

Currie was born in West Bloomfield Township, Michigan. He graduated from Central Michigan University. In 2001, Currie moved to South Carolina, where he began growing his own peppers in the yard and experimenting with crossbreeds.[4] He was featured in the episode "Chili Eating" in the 2020 Netflix documentary series We Are the Champions.[5][6] He was also featured on Dirty Jobs.[7]

PuckerButt Pepper Company

Currie started the PuckerButt Pepper Company in Fort Mill, South Carolina, in 2003.[8] The company sells peppers considered to be extremely hot. It sells seeds, pepper mash, and hot sauce.[4] PuckerButt is the largest organic pepper farm in the US, with annual sales of around $1 million.[4][8] Currie's hot sauce "The Last Dab" was created for the YouTube show Hot Ones. The interview asks guest to eat increasingly spicy hot wings, with "The Last Dab" being the spiciest sauce presented.[8][9]

Currie crossbreeds his pepper plants by taking the pollen of one plant with a paintbrush and then delivering that pollen to a different plant. To create the Carolina Reaper, he took a pepper from Pakistan and combined it with one from Saint Vincent.[10] In 2013, Guinness World Records gave the title of "World's Hottest Chili" to the Carolina Reaper.[11][12] On August 23, 2023, he was officially recognized as having broken the previous record when Guinness World Records certified his Pepper X as the hottest chili pepper on earth, measuring at 2.69 million SHU.[13][14]

References
  1. Wells, Jane (2018-06-20). "How this ex-addict turned self-made millionaire created the world's most hellish peppers". CNBC. Retrieved 2023-10-18.
  2. News and Info | (2015-04-29). "Ed Currie, creator of the Carolina Reaper, is working on an even hotter variety". Cayenne Diane. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  3. "Don't Fear the Reaper: Smokin' Ed Currie on the Link Between Peppers and Addiction". Honeysuckle Magazine. 2018-05-29. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  4. Gabriele, Amanda. "How One Man Overcame Addiction by Growing the Hottest Peppers in the World". Thrillist. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  5. Schneider, Michael (2020-10-20). "Netflix to Premiere 'We Are the Champions,' Rainn Wilson's Look at Real, Unusual Competitions (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  6. Cornelisse, William (2020-11-26). "'We Are the Champions' Showcases Unique Global Contests". The Heights. Retrieved 2021-03-14.
  7. Nolasco, Stephanie (9 December 2022). "'Dirty Jobs' star Mike Rowe reveals the new gigs that tested his guts: 'My dreams were fevered and vivid'". FOXBusiness. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  8. Wells, Jane (2018-06-20). "How this ex-addict turned self-made millionaire created the world's most hellish peppers". CNBC. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  9. 07 - Ed Currie - PuckerButt Pepper Company - The Hottest Farmer in the World *AG ODDITIES EDITION* - United We Ag, retrieved 2020-12-17
  10. "Ed Currie is the Mad Genius Behind the Carolina Reaper". Man of Many. 2019-11-17. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  11. "Smokin Ed Currie". Charleston Wine + Food. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  12. "Of Note: Ed Currie, The Inventor of the Hottest Pepper in the World". scribble. Retrieved 2020-12-17.
  13. "Hottest chilli pepper". Guinness World Records Ltd. 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
  14. "Pepper X dethrones Carolina Reaper as world's hottest chilli pepper". Guinness World Records. October 16, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2023.
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