It’s Happening: Sriracha’s Manufacturers Have Stopped Shipments
That Sriracha shortage we were talking about a couple weeks back? Not hyperbole, it turns out, but a very real problem, and the LA Times is now reporting that the sauce’s parent company, Huy Fong Foods, has been forced by the California Department of Public Health to cease all shipments until mid-January.
The shut-down comes amid an ongoing legal fight with the city of Irwindale, whose residents claim Sriracha’s production releases a smell into the town that’s caused a series of health problems for residents. The 30-day shutdown is already causing problems for wholesalers, including one who estimated up to $300,000 in lost sales per month, and told the paper, “We have already received more than 30 angry phone calls today. It drives me crazy because this is the first time we have been in this situation.” Another said, “We’ll lose money. Their sauce is not easily replaced.”
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