Pepper X has replaced the Carolina Reaper as the world's hottest chilli.
Assuming the title of the spiciest pepper on earth, Pepper X has now firmly secured its spot in the Guinness World Records.
The greenish-yellow pepper, grown by Ed Currie, reportedly measures 2.69 million Scoville heat units (SHU).
The Scoville scale, developed in 1912 measures, how much capsaicin is found in the chilli, which is what makes it spicy.
By contrast, the Carolina Reaper that Currie had previously harvested had a Scoville measurement of 1.64 million. A jalapeño comes in at a humble 3,000 to 8,000 SHU.
The new pepper is said to be a crossbreed between a Carolina Reaper and a "brutally hot" mysterious pepper that was sent to Currie by a friend.
Currie is the founder of the PuckerButt Pepper Company and has dedicated many years to creating the world's spiciest chillis. For the last ten years, he's been working on bringing Pepper X to life.
He also claims to be one of just five people who have tried eating an entire Pepper X.
"I was feeling the heat for three and a half hours. Then the cramps came," he explained, before adding: "Those cramps are horrible. I was laid out flat on a marble wall for approximately an hour in the rain, groaning in pain."
The new pepper debuted on the YouTube show, Hot Ones, where its creator spoke about the crossbreeding process and finding the right flavour for the world's spiciest pepper.
He said: “When we bred this pepper out, first thing we looked for is something to raise that heat level to what we thought was going to be the maximum, and the second thing was flavor.”
Currie was also asked why the spicy pepper growing industry was so high stakes, to which he explained that people are constantly trying to steal his recipes.
“People have been trying to steal [the Carolina Reaper pepper] for the last 10 years,” Currie explained to the presenters. “There are also some high corporations who want to take what’s not theirs, and they’re willing to pay other people to do it.
“We have to protect ourselves. This is our pepper and we are going to take the world out with it.”
During the show, Currie was almost reduced to tears as he spoke of the teamwork behind Pepper X.
Those who want to try the spicy chilli will be able to do so exclusively through a hot sauce developed by the chilli producers.
