All entrants must be certified professional manufacturers, following all FDA regulations designated for consumer mass production by a certified kitchen, and/or co-packer. Products must be available for sale by January 1, 2021 to qualify

A copy of your canning license or Federal registration will be required upon entry of the contest. If your product is packaged by someone else, you must submit a copy of your manufacturer’s license or registration. No “home packed” products may be entered. Labels must meet FDA guidelines.

All entrants will submit three (3) samples of each entry unless otherwise noted on the entry form. Your product will be shipped along with the entry form, copy of your license/registration, and full payment of fees to the designated collection site of the contest, and must be received by the entry date to be considered eligible.

You may enter as many products as you like. For instance, you may enter the mild, medium, and hot versions of your salsa, but these count as three separate entries. Products that are submitted in various flavors must have one entry per flavor.

A category is defined as a major grouping of subcategories. Barbecue Sauce, Hot Sauce Condiments, etc. It is not permissible to enter the same product in different categories of the contest. Products may only be entered in one category. For example, a product cannot be entered into a Hot Sauce subcategory, and then again in a Barbecue Sauce subcategory. If your sauce fits in several subcategories of one category, then you may enter it in all that are appropriate. All entries will be reviewed to deem them Category Appropriate.

The Fiery Food Challenge management reserves the right to move products to another category, to create or to split categories as it deems necessary, without notice. All products entered in the Consumer Ready contest will be judged “as is” and will not be mixed or served with any other products before tasting. Unless you are entered into a “Fresh” category, your product should not require refrigeration prior to opening.

If your product is fresh and must be refrigerated, it must be entered in the Fresh Salsa category, unless special permission is granted. Fresh entries must be packaged in dry ice and must arrive at the contest address between the dates specified on the entry form.

All food products entered must be canned or sealed in accordance with standard food and health safety procedures and protocols. The Fiery Food Challenge reserves the right to discard and disqualify any entries that are not properly canned or sealed, according to food and health safety procedures.

Each product must be properly labeled with ingredients listed along with the name of the product. All entries must be carefully packaged. The Fiery Food Challenge will not be held responsible for any damage incurred during shipping.

All rules for entering the Fiery Food Challenge apply to the Cook-Off division, but with the following exceptions. The Cook-Off division includes products that will be judged in a cooked application or in a mixture with other products. For example, this category includes powdered dips that must be mixed with sour cream and grilling sauces which must be tasted on prepared meat. All products in the Cook-Off division will be prepared by culinary professionals using like ingredients, under controlled supervision.

The ingredients that are provided by the contest will be at the sole discretion of the Fiery Food Challenge and preparing chefs. Chile con carne, marinades, and dry seasoning rubs will be made with beef. Jerkseasoning, grilling and finishing sauces, and wing sauces will be made with chicken. Pasta sauce will be served on pasta without any proteins added.

Dip mixes and salsa mixes must be made with dried seasonings/ingredients that are to be combined with sour cream or other ingredients to be eligible for this category. For example: a Consumer Ready salsa or dipping sauce with instructions to mix with cream cheese would not be accepted in this category.

Soup and Stew mixes and Side Dishes must be ready to heat or made with dried seasonings/ingredients with no more than three (3) additional ingredients to be added by the contest. For example: a tortilla soup mix should come with most of the ingredients needed in the mix, but may need to be mixed with water, chicken, and cream from the contest. However, the entrant should not provide a seasoning packet and ask the contest to provide the bulk of ingredients such as fresh vegetables, meats, etc., to complete the entry.

Beverages will be included in the Cook-Off division, as most of these products must be mixed in order to be properly tasted. If your product is a “mix,” you may designate ONE ingredient (alcohol or otherwise) to be supplied by the contest. For example: If you enter a Bloody Mary Mix that needs to be mixed with tomato juice and vodka, you must supply the tomato juice as well as your mix, and the contest will supply the vodka.

The Cook-Off division is conducted by the same chefs, in the same commercial kitchen, at the same time. The Fiery Food Cook-Off is not judged by the preparing chefs but by other culinary professionals.

One sample per entry is required. All labels and logos must be mounted on white art board, with company name and entry category clearly printed on the back. Packaging entries are entered as freestanding pieces. Samples in the marketing division will not be returned.

Products must not have been Marketed after January 1, 2022.

This division recognizes distinguished achievement in the introduction of a new product. Its purpose is to promote the development and marketing of excellent new products. The Best New Product award is based on tasting and a marketing statement provided by the contestant. The marketing statement should describe the product but should not state the company or product name, or appear on company letterhead, as it will still be judged as a blind tasting. The marketing statement must be Fifty (50) words or less.

The Best New Product requires three (3) samples per entry. Entries MUST include a marketing statement of the product in Fifty (50) words or less. Products in the food category will be tasted and judged against this written statement.

The Fiery Food Challenge is not responsible if this written statement is not included in the entry. If the statement is not included, it will adversely affect your final score.

You do not need to enter separately for these awards. If you are entered in any category you are already eligible for the Best of and Overall Grand Prize. This prize is awarded to the single product with the overall highest score in each category and across all categories.

For example: If product “XYZ” is entered in the Hot Sauce-Fruit category and its score is a 50, and the next highest score in the Hot Sauce category is product “ABC” with a 47, then product “XYZ” is the winner of the Best of Category prize. The Product with the highest total overall wins the Grand Champion award.