Which is the world's hottest pepper? California-native sets Guinness record for eating 3 under 9 seconds 

A California man gulped down six Carolina Reapers, breaking the world record. Gregory Foster ate the world's hottest pepper, setting a new record for the fastest time to eat three Reaper chillies.

His record timing of 8.72 seconds beat the previous record by one complete second. The attempt took place last year on Saturday, December 11, at the Seaport Shopping Center in downtown San Diego.

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Gregory Foster loves to eat peppers and owns a hot sauce company

Gregory Foster has a love for spice and attempted the record as a personal challenge. His first attempt was disqualified because he could not swallow the chillies before the record time.

The record-breaker then decided to take a second chance and munched down three more chillies. The Carolina Reaper holds the Guinness record for being the hottest chilli in the world.

In a short video posted on the Guinness World Records Instagram page, the San Diego native was quick with the challenge.

He explained that he had practised and mastered a chewing technique where he didn't wait for the chilli to start taking effect on his taste buds. He said:

"In practising for an attempt like this it is more about mechanics and muscle memory, so I time myself eating small sweet peppers to get the chewing and swallowing down to automatic responses."

Foster's record required him to chew and swallow three Carolina Reapers within 9.72 seconds. The last record was held by a Canadian competitive eater, Mike Jack.

The attempt was confirmed by independent witnesses, who were approached randomly and asked to participate in the event.

Foster also added:

"I’ve been trying to advance the awareness and the excitement surrounding the super-hot chillies out there and showcase my amazing talent of consuming vast amounts of these incredible pods of pain in the fastest time possible."

Foster had previously set a record for the most Carolina Reapers eaten in a minute. In 2016, he consumed 120 grams (4.23 ounces) of the deadly chilli in 60 seconds. The record still stands after over five years.

He revealed that he likes to push his limits and enjoys the spice's flavor. He shared:

"Professionally, I spent nearly 30 years working in restaurants developing my flavour awareness. I’ve always loved spicy food and have constantly tried to push my tolerance to the limit."

He talked about his love for gardening and his very own hot sauce factory, saying:

"I have been a gardener since childhood with a deep fascination for and love of Capsicums. Currently I own a hot sauce company, Inferno Farms, which allows me to live my passion for chillies in every way."

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What is the Carolina Reaper?

The Carolina Reaper is the world's hottest pepper with over 1.5 million Scoville Heat Units. The extremely hot chilli was developed by a grower called Ed Currie. It is also called HP22B pepper.

Currie created the Carolina Reaper by crossing a Pakistani Naga with a Red Habanero from St Vincent's Island in the West Indies.

It was bred in South Carolina and has a fruity flavour. Guinness World Records recognizes the Carolina Reaper as the hottest pepper in the world. The heat range varies from 1,400,000 to 2,200,000 units on the Scoville Scale.

For comparison, a Carolina Reaper is four hundred times spicier than a jalapeno, which scores only 5,000 units on the Scoville Scale.