Red chilli is the largest spice export from India and the one with the most complicated compliance history. Sudan dyes in 2003, aflatoxin findings every monsoon, Salmonella import alerts in the US, ethylene-oxide rejections in the EU since 2020 — every problem the spice trade has had, chilli has had first. A buyer who understands the four tests, and the two numbers that describe the product, buys chilli well.
This guide explains how ODOD Group specifies and ships its own red chilli powder and what to ask of any supplier.
Varieties, and why blends exist
Indian chilli is traded by variety, and each variety sits at a different point on two scales. Byadgi (Karnataka) is the colour chilli: deep red, ASTA 120–160, mild at 5,000–15,000 SHU, and the base of most "Kashmiri" chilli sold abroad. Guntur (Andhra Pradesh; S4, 334 and similar) is the hot workhorse at 35,000–45,000 SHU with moderate colour. Teja (S17) is very hot, 75,000–100,000 SHU, lower colour, the feedstock for hot-sauce concentrates and oleoresin. A Western seasoning usually wants medium heat and strong colour, which no single variety delivers, so serious suppliers blend to a written target.
The two numbers
ASTA colour value (method 20.1) measures extractable red pigment — carotenoids — spectrophotometrically. It is the number that predicts how red your sauce or seasoning will be. Scoville heat units are calculated from capsaicinoid content measured by HPLC (the modern method; the taste-panel Scoville test is history). Colour and heat are independent, so specify both with tolerances and expect the supplier to blend lot to lot to hold them. Colour fades in light and with age; buy in lined, opaque bags and rotate stock.
Sudan dyes
Sudan I–IV are industrial azo dyes, carcinogenic, and were found in chilli powder and products made from it across Europe in 2003–05, triggering one of the largest food recalls in UK history. The EU has required documentary evidence of Sudan-dye testing on chilli and curry products from certain origins since Decision 2004/92/EC. Testing now usually covers Sudan I–IV, Para Red and Rhodamine B. Any chilli you buy should carry a per-lot "not detected" from an accredited laboratory; brighter-than-expected colour at a lower-than-expected price is the warning sign.
Aflatoxin and ochratoxin
Aflatoxin is produced by moulds when pods dry slowly in humid air — typically pods spread on the ground for days during a damp spell. The EU limit for Capsicum is 5 µg/kg B1 and 10 µg/kg total; the UK carries the same; the US action level is 20 ppb total. Ochratoxin A is limited at 15 µg/kg in the EU. The control is on the farm: raised, covered drying platforms or solar dryers, and rapid drying to under 10 % moisture. Then test every lot, because a single wet week in one district can ruin a season.
Ethylene oxide and Salmonella
Chilli is a low-moisture spice that can carry Salmonella, and the US FDA has issued import alerts on Indian spices for that reason. The compliant answer is validated steam treatment. Ethylene oxide is still permitted in the US but banned for food in the EU and UK, where ETO findings have driven thousands of rejections and recalls since 2020. Buy ETO-free, steam-treated chilli for every market, and require the ETO test (ethylene oxide plus 2-chloroethanol, LOQ 0.02 mg/kg) per lot.
The EU and UK border
Capsicum products from India have appeared repeatedly in the Annexes of Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 for increased official controls, for pesticide residues, aflatoxin or Salmonella depending on the form and the period. When listed, consignments need CHED-D pre-notification, a documentary check on every lot and identity and physical checks on a set share, sometimes with an official certificate from the Indian competent authority and an accredited analytical report. The UK maintains an equivalent high-risk list with IPAFFS pre-notification. Check the current Annexes before each shipment; they change twice a year.
Specification checklist
- Varieties or blend, and the ASTA and SHU targets with tolerances.
- Moisture ≤ 10 %; ash and acid-insoluble ash.
- Mesh size.
- Aflatoxin B1 / total and ochratoxin A — per lot.
- Sudan I–IV, Para Red, Rhodamine B — per lot.
- ETO not detected; steam treatment documented.
- Pesticide multi-residue screen; heavy metals.
- Microbiology including Salmonella (25 g).
- Packaging (lined, opaque), shelf life at receipt, and origin documents.
Packaging and freight
25 kg multi-wall or PP bags with food-grade liners, 40 to a pallet; 500 kg big bags for large processors; retail through co-packers. Chilli is fairly dense — a 20-ft container carries 16–18 tonnes. Keep it below 25 °C and out of the light; ASTA colour drops measurably within months in a lit warehouse.
What drives the price
- Variety mix — Byadgi commands a premium for colour; Teja for heat.
- The harvest (February to May) and carry-over; Guntur is the world's largest chilli market and prices move weekly.
- Covered drying and the farm relationships behind it.
- Testing — aflatoxin, Sudan, ETO, residues and microbiology per lot.
- Steam treatment, milling and packaging; incoterm.
Before your first container
- Write the ASTA and SHU targets down with tolerances.
- Require per-lot Sudan, aflatoxin, ETO and Salmonella results.
- Confirm steam treatment and covered drying.
- Check the EU 2019/1793 Annexes or UK high-risk list for the current status of Capsicum from India.
- Sample, test in your own formula, and agree a colour reference.
ODOD Group blends and ships red chilli powder to written ASTA and SHU targets from FDA-registered, HACCP / ISO 22000-certified processors, tested per lot for Sudan dyes, aflatoxin, ochratoxin and ETO, to blenders, manufacturers and packers in the US, UK, Ireland and the EU. Send us your targets and we reply within one working day.
Frequently asked questions
How do you specify heat and colour?
Separately, because they come from different compounds. Colour is measured as ASTA colour value (method 20.1) and comes mainly from carotenoids; heat is measured in Scoville heat units from capsaicinoid content by HPLC. You give us a target for each with a tolerance — for example ASTA 100 ± 10 and 20,000 SHU ± 3,000 — and we blend Byadgi, Guntur and Teja to hit it, lot after lot.
Do you test for Sudan dyes?
On every lot. Sudan I–IV, Para Red and Rhodamine B are screened at an accredited laboratory and reported on the COA as not detected. Chilli powder was the original Sudan-dye scandal in Europe in 2003–05, and the controls have never been relaxed.
How is aflatoxin controlled?
Aflatoxin forms when pods are dried slowly on the ground in humid conditions. We buy from farm clusters that dry on raised, covered platforms or in solar dryers and test every lot — B1 below 5 and total below 10 µg/kg, the EU limits, which are stricter than the US action level of 20 ppb. Ochratoxin A is tested as well.
Is the chilli treated with ethylene oxide?
No. Salmonella control is by validated steam treatment for every market, and each lot is tested for ETO and 2-chloroethanol with a limit of quantification of 0.02 mg/kg, as the EU and UK require.
Can you supply Kashmiri-style mild red chilli?
Yes. Byadgi single-variety powder gives the deep red colour (ASTA 120–160) at low heat (5,000–15,000 SHU) that "Kashmiri" chilli is known for, and we label it as Byadgi rather than Kashmiri unless the origin is genuinely Kashmir.
What are the EU border checks?
Capsicum products from India have appeared in the Annexes of Regulation (EU) 2019/1793 for increased official controls, which means pre-notification, documentary checks on every consignment and a share of identity and physical checks with sampling. We ship with the accredited aflatoxin, Sudan and residue reports and, where required, the official certificate, so the check confirms what the COA already says.