Habaneros

Habaneros carries a safety score of 3/5 and appears in 45 indexed US food products.

Safety score 60.0%

3/5 from FDA SAFFA + CSPI Chemical Cuisine

How common is vs other flagged additives?

Number of indexed products containing each of the most common flagged additives — Habaneros highlighted.

Indexed products containing each flagged additive. Source: Open Food Facts ingredient lists × FDA SAFFA × CSPI Chemical Cuisine.

Caramel Coloring22612Red 4021595Yellow 518987Carrageenan17853Blue 116643Yellow 613560Sucralose10490Habaneros45
Indexed products containing each flagged additive. Source: Open Food Facts ingredient lists × FDA SAFFA × CSPI Chemical Cuisine.
Safety Score
3/5

Safety Assessment

Habaneros has a moderate safety profile (3/5). While approved for use, some studies or consumer advocacy groups have raised questions about certain aspects of this ingredient. Consumers who prefer caution may wish to limit intake.

What the Data Says About

Habaneros currently appears in 45 products across the OpenFoodFacts catalog we index, which gives a concrete measure of its footprint on US grocery shelves. Our internal safety score of 3/5 synthesizes FDA Substances Added to Food (SAFFA) regulatory status with the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) Chemical Cuisine classification. These two frameworks capture different questions: regulators ask whether exposure at typical intake is acceptable, while consumer-advocacy groups examine cumulative dietary load and vulnerable-population risk.

Habaneros serves one or more technical functions in food manufacturing — stabilization, flavor, preservation, or structural role — which explains its presence across multiple product categories in our database. Inspection and outbreak records frequently trace back to control failures around functional additives, whether through batch contamination, undisclosed substitutions, or labeling mismatches that trigger recall classifications by the FDA.

No specific concern flags are attached to Habaneros in our current data snapshot beyond the regulatory and CSPI classifications above. That does not rule out individual sensitivity reactions, and anyone managing allergies, elimination diets, or chronic conditions should verify with a qualified healthcare professional before relying on population-level ratings.

Safety Profile at a Glance

Regulatory and safety classifications for Habaneros
Source Classification Year
FDA SAFFA Not listed 2024
CSPI Chemical Cuisine Not rated 2024
PlainFoodSafe Score 3/5 2026
Product footprint 45 products OpenFoodFacts

FDA SAFFA database, CSPI Chemical Cuisine ratings, OpenFoodFacts product index. See methodology.

Products Containing

Showing 45 of 45 products

Bazaar Magic Harissa Style Hot Sauce With Carolina Reaper, Bazaar Magic Harissa Style With Carolina Reaper
Bigfat's
100/100
Bigfat's, 208 hot sauce, bajan style
Bigfat's
100/100
Bottle da bomb beyond insanity hot sauce
Unknown
100/100
Chipotle & habanero cheddar cheese
Unknown
100/100
Fiery habanero cheddar & monterey jack shredded cheese, fiery jack
Unknown
100/100
Fiery Hot Sauce
Frankie V's Kitchens
100/100
Fiery hot sauce
Unknown
100/100
Fine hot sauce
Lola's
100/100
Fresh Homestyle Salsa
El Sol Foods Llc.
100/100
Fresh Salsa
Mitchell's Fresh
100/100
Fresh salsa
Unknown
100/100
Ground Zero Hot Sauce
Original Juan
100/100
Habanero California's Original Braided String Cheese
King Cheese Inc.
100/100
Habanero Cheddar Cheese
Great Lakes Cheese
100/100
Habanero cheddar cheese
Cabot
100/100
Habanero Pepper Spread
Chili Dawg's
100/100
Heartbeat hot sauce
Unknown
100/100
Honey Hot Sauce, Honey
Bee hoss
100/100
Horsetooth hot sauce, aloha mr. hand bbq sauce, pineapple, habanero
Horsetooth Hot Sauce
100/100
Hot sauce
Unknown
100/100
Hot Souse With Passion
Jump Up And Kiss Me
100/100
Jack cheese creamery
Unknown
100/100
Muscoda Mayhem Colby Jack
Meister
100/100
Original
Lola's Fine Hot Sauce
100/100
Peach Mango Habanero Jam, Peach Mango Habanero
Kramer's
100/100
Pepper jam
Unknown
100/100
Pineapple Habanero
Ht Traders
100/100
Pineapple Habanero Hot Sauce
Unknown
100/100
Pineapple rage hot sauce
Famous Dave's
100/100
Premium Naturally Aged Cheddar Cheese, Hot Habanero
Cabot, Cabot Creamery Cooperative
100/100
Quinoa puffs
I Heart Foods Corp.
100/100
Roasted Mild
Ay Que Pica!
100/100
Salsa
Oaxaca Mama Salsa
100/100
Salsa
El Sol Foods
100/100
Salsa
Simply Appetizers
100/100
Series Salsa
H-E-B
100/100
Sierra Jack Cheese
Sierra Nevada
100/100
Spicy steak burrito
Evol
100/100
Spooky White Sauce
Frankie V's
100/100
Sweet Habanero Pepper Sauce
Unknown
100/100
Sweet heat jalapeno preserve
Unknown
100/100
Texas habanero salsa
Hazelwood's
100/100
Whisps bites pepper jack
Whisps
100/100
Wickedly Habanero Premium Selected Cheddar Cheese
Cabot Creamery
100/100
Yancey's Fancy, Pasteurized Process Aged Cheddar Cheese, Chipotle & Habanero
Yancey's Fancy Inc.
100/100

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Habaneros safe to eat?

Habaneros has a safety score of 3/5. Always check with a healthcare provider if you have specific dietary concerns.

What products contain Habaneros?

Habaneros is found in 45 products in our database, spanning various food categories and brands.

What does Habaneros do in food?

Habaneros serves various technical functions in food manufacturing and processing.

Where does this ingredient safety data come from?

Safety data comes from the FDA's SAFFA (Substances Added to Food) database, CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) ratings, and the OpenFoodFacts product database. Product counts reflect items cataloged in OpenFoodFacts.