The Hot Pepper Awards 2010 - Enter Now! The 4th annual fiery foods competition, hosted by the Internet's #1 chilihead forum, The Hot Pepper.



Why Enter?

Show the Industry and consumers that you have an award-winning product. When it carries the seal of The Hot Pepper Awards, it not only signifies a win, but a win in a competition that cares about quality! And how about exposure? Postings, press releases, advertising... what are you waiting for?



Categories:

We accept any commercial spicy condiment, food, or beverage product. This year you can select the exact sub-category in the drop-down box when you pay. We reserve the right to recategorize.



Awards:

The Hot Pepper Award is the overall top category award. There are also 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place awards for sub-categories. Other awards include The Pepper Patch Award (best product line), The Hybrid Pepper Award (innovation), The Picasso Pepper Award (labels/artwork/packaging), and The Offensive Pepper Award (most offensive product name).

Winners of The Hot Pepper Award will receive free advertising on thehotpepper.com; a 180x150 pixel ad that rotates with all the top category winners. The site gets thousands of hits per day, and is the most popular chilihead forum on the Internet. To see these ads visit the forum homepage and look on the right side (right column). The ads will remain live until they are replaced with the following year's winners.

All Winners will receive a custom certificate that is perfect for framing (example below left) as well as website and print quality graphics in an array of sizes (example below right). All Winners will be announced on thehotpepper.com, the most popular chilihead community on the Internet, and each listing will include a link to the winner's website. We also submit press releases to news sites and blogs. Winners have received feature stories in newspapers, etc., and reported increased sales due to the exposure from THPA.
Rules:

1. Your product must have heat; any heat level, from mild (1) to extreme (10+). The heat is usually from chili peppers but can also be from spices, horseradish, wasabi, or other heat providing ingredient. We do not judge 0 heat products.
2. No amateur entries. All entries must be commercially made (commercial kitchen, co-packer, mass-production) with labels and tamper-free packaging (preferred), and be available for sale somewhere on the Internet*, even if it's only your own website. If amateur entries or entries that appear unsafe for consumption are received they will be discarded and no refund will be given, so do not try to bend this rule.
*If your product is not for sale on the Internet yet, you may still submit it, but you must have other products under that name brand for sale on the Internet, or a website that states where your products can be purchased.
3. The product entered must be your creation and one-of-a-kind. Do not send private-label products.
4. You must send two commercial size products for each entry. Commercial size means the size you sell, not samplers.
5. Do not send your products until the shipping window has opened. When the window is open you will receive an email with the form to fill out along with the address.



Deadlines:

The first two deadlines are "pay by" deadlines. Pay now, ship later, save $. We want the freshest products. The shipping window will open on July 15, and you will receive an email with the printable entry forms and shipping instructions.

EARLYBIRD DEADLINE (payment deadline) - May 15 2010 - $40 per entry
REGULAR DEADLINE (payment deadline, shipping window opens) - JULY 15 2010 - $50 per entry
FINAL DEADLINE (postmarked) - Sept. 15 2010* - $60 per entry
*Sept. 1 for International entries, airmail only.



How To Enter:

All of the categories are listed below. Use the drop down selector to select the most appropriate category for each product, enter the product name into the text box, and click "Add to Cart". To add more click "Continue Shopping" from the paypal page or use two windows. You may enter as many products as you like, and you may add additional categories for the same product. If you have different heat levels for your product you may want to enter all of them, as we do have heat level sub-categories.



Enter Hot Sauce
Category. May add multiple for one product.
Enter product name:
 Enter Wing Sauce
Category. May add multiple for one product.
Enter product name:
Enter BBQ Sauce
Category. May add multiple for one product.
Enter product name:


Enter Salsa
Category. May add multiple for one product.
Enter product name:

Enter Dry Spice/Other Condiment
Category. May add multiple for one product.
Enter product name:

Enter Snacks, Misc., and Extreme Heat Products
Category. May add multiple for one product.
Enter product name:




Previous Winners:

2009 Winners
2008 Winners
2007 Winners



Terms and conditions may change at any time. No refunds. All payments final. If you pay and fail to send the products on time or at all (or we do not receive the products for any reason) there are no refunds. If you send products that are not safe to judge or are not enterable for any reason there are no refunds.