Genetic and Seasonal Factors Influence Pungent Pepper Capsaicinoid and Vitamin C Content

Pungent red peppers and chilis are healthy foods and crucial ingredients of modern diets due to their content of bioactive phytochemicals such as carotenoids, tocopherols, capsaicinoids, polyphenols, and vitamin C. The production of pungent peppers with outstanding nutritional properties is influenced by genetic factors and their interaction with the environments where they are cultivated. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of genotype and climate conditions on the response of capsaicinoids and vitamin C. The extracts of pungent materials and vitamin C were separated and qualitatively determined by HPLC alone or hyphenated with mass spectroscopy. Four genotypes were selected and cultivated under traditional agricultural practices in southern Hungary. The yield properties and the contents of capsaicinoids and vitamin C were significantly influenced by genetic factors and, to a high extent, by the interaction between genotype × environment. The highest yield of 2.86 ± 0.59 kg/m2 was recorded for the CS variety. The yield was significantly decreased under high precipitation and low air temperature. The highest concentration of capsaicin of 1586–1734 µg/g dwt was found in the BHJ variety. The lowest level of 514 µg/g dwt of capsaicin was determined in the CS variety, in which the content significantly increased to 772 µg/g dwt with the increase in rainfall and decrease in air temperature in the warmer season of 2022. In most cultivars examined, capsaicin content negatively responded to the change of the climate toward higher precipitation and lower temperature except for SZ178, in which the concentration of capsaicinoids stayed insignificantly varied. The amount of vitamin C ranged between 570 and 135 µg/g dwt, with the highest content being in the BHJ and the lowest in the REK variety. In most varieties except the REK, vitamin C positively responded to a high and negatively to the reduced levels of precipitation. In conclusion, the phytochemical components of hot peppers respond differently to climatic factors—such as high rainfall, elevated air temperature, and intense sunlight—depending on the genotype’s ability to adapt to environmental changes.