The mystery behind the famous sauce’s disappearance

Huy Fong Sriracha Sauce was very famous in Finland. It is also known as a rooster sauce because of the rooster on the side of the bottle. However, the sauce has disappeared from the shelves of many Finnish stores.

The disappearance of the product is not related to the fact that sauce bottles have started to explode due to fermentation, as speculated in social media.

According to Yle, the reason for the loss of the product is in fact less dramatic: the importation of the sauce has been discontinued because it contains a preservative which is prohibited in spice sauces.

In customs, the additive composition of sriracha sauce was clarified in food control. On the basis of a risk assessment, the flask sampled at the customs laboratory was referred to a sulfite analysis which showed that they contained a significant amount of sulfites.

Jonna Neffling, Product Safety Manager at Customs said, "We don't know if sulfites have always been included in the product's recipe or only for a short while." 

Nor is it clear to customs why the use of sulfites is restricted.

Sirarcha sauce is an Asian type sauce and includes chili, garlic, vinegar, salt and sugar.