Dec 27, 2013 11:11 AM EST By Jaleesa Baulkman, UniversityHerald Reporter

The Carolina Reaper pepper grown in South Carolina by Ed Currie of PuckerButt Pepper Co. has replaced the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion as the world's hottest chile pepper, according to the Guinness Book of World Records.

Ending a four-year search looking for the hottest pepper on Earth, The Guinness Book of World Records have decided last month that no one grows a more scorching chile than Currie, the Associated Press reported.

However, it will never be certain if Currie's peppers are truly the world's hottest.

Paul Bosland, director of the Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University, told the AP  the heat of the pepper depends on the plant's genetics, as well as where it is grown.

He also added "the heat is more about being macho than seasoning."

"You have to think of chili heat like salt. A little bit improves the flavor, but a lot ruins it," Bosland said.

The heat of the pepper is measured in Scoville Units. On the Scoville scale, zero is bland and a regular jalapeno pepper registers around 5,000 to 8,000 units. The AP says pepper spray comes in at about 2 million Scoville units.

The Los Angeles Times reported that Currie's pepper rates an average of 1,569,300 Scoville heat units as tested by Winthrop University in South Carolina, certifying the heat of the Carolina Reaper. An individual pepper measured at 2.2 million Scoville Units, the associated press reported.

New Mexico State University's Chile Pepper Institute named the Trinidad Moruga Scorpion the hottest chile in the world in 2012 with an average of more than 1.2 million Scoville heat units and individual plants with a heat of more than 2 million units.

Currie also sells Carolina Reaper seeds and hot sauces, called "I Dare You Stupit" and "Purgatory sauce," on his PuckerButt Pepper website.

See Now: Covert Team Inside Newsweek Revealed as Key Players in False Human Trafficking Lawsuit