Kalamazoo, Mich., October 26, 2026--Spicy foods have officially graduated from a growing trend to a diversified market. Kalsec, a global leader in natural ingredients for the food and beverage industry, confirmed this change through the latest iteration of its milestone global consumer research report, “Beyond The Burn: The Next Degree. What 9,000 Consumers Across 17 Countries Told Us About Hot & Spicy.”
Kalsec has tracked consumer preferences around peppers and spicy flavors across ten years and five survey editions. This year’s report confirms that while spicy food adoption has stabilized at record highs – 66 percent of consumers report eating spicier food than last year and 81 percent say they enjoy food with a medium heat level or higher – the type of demand has transformed. Rather than chasing extreme, undifferentiated heat, consumers now seek specific chili pepper varieties and explore complex pairings.
“Consumers are moving beyond asking ‘how hot?’ to asking ‘what kind?’ They want to know the type of pepper, where it comes from, and how its heat is balanced with other flavors,” said Melissa Laupp, Director of Global Marketing at Kalsec. “For manufacturers, the next step is to make the heat and flavor experience more clear to consumers, helping them understand what to expect from a product before they buy it.”
Key Findings from “Beyond The Burn: The Next Degree”:- Three in five consumers report a willingness to pay a premium for high-quality hot and spicy foods.
- Sixty-two percent of global consumers say the specific source of heat matters – an 11 percent increase in just two years – and two-thirds of consumers view products featuring specific chili peppers as inherently more innovative.
- Instant noodles have overtaken sauces as the application where consumers are most willing to experiment with heat, with 45 percent expecting heat in noodles by default.
- Citrus notes serve as the primary gateway carrying heat into categories consumers traditionally resist, such as desserts and beverages.
- While the sweet+spicy flavor combination is still the dominant preference among consumers, other pairings like spicy+floral (113 percent growth since 2019) and spicy+bitter (68 percent growth since 2019) are quickly gaining popularity.
- Packaging clarity is a must: 77 percent of consumers state packaging must clearly indicate heat intensity before they will purchase a product for the first time. However, 55 percent of consumers interpret the word "mild" as moderate, prominent heat, while 53 percent interpret the exact same word as light heat that is merely noticeable.
- Consumers read packaging colors before copy: nearly 80 percent associate red with quite-to-extremely spicy profiles, whereas orange drops sharply (only 35 percent associate it with heat), and green signals no heat at all.
The survey was conducted across 17 countries, including newly added data from the Middle East and Africa, and outlines actionable regional consumer personas alongside distinct generational behaviors. American consumers approach heat as personal customization through sauces; Europeans prioritize ingredient provenance; ASEAN consumers demand premium varieties of classic favorites; and Middle Eastern and African consumers treat spice as social currency, sharing new-to-market spicy snacks with friends and family. Additionally, while Gen Z is the sole cohort continuing to ramp up heat intensity, older demographics are moderating heat levels, basing purchasing decisions on how long heat lingers.
“Heat cannot be treated as a one-size-fits-all ingredient,” added Mark Staples, Vice President of Global Marketing at Kalsec. “Kalsec leverages its 65 years of capsicum research and extraction expertise to help manufacturers build heat profiles that hit precise culinary targets, from consistent Scoville delivery and lingering control to authentic varietal profiles.”
Click here to download the full research report, “Beyond the Burn: The Next Degree.”
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About Kalsec, Inc.
Kalsec is the premier global producer of natural taste and sensory, color, and food protection solutions for the food and beverage industry. With over 65 years of experience, Kalsec’s deep technical expertise and cutting-edge natural ingredient solutions enable customers to overcome the complex challenges in creating delicious, savory and exciting products that meet consumers’ evolving needs. Headquartered in Kalamazoo, Michigan, with production and distribution facilities around the world, Kalsec is a certified B Corp committed to unlocking the potential of people, nature, and science to nourish the world. Discover What’s Naturally Possible™ at www.kalsec.com.
Kalsec Media Contact:
Alli Cooke
LLYC
alli.cooke@llyc.global
