SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (WWTI) — Stewart’s Shops is “turning up the heat” for a local fundraising campaign. Stewart’s Shops announced this week that it will be matching the first $10,000 worth of donations that are given to the Capital Roots #HotPepperChallenge.

Capital Roots is a non-profit organization in Troy that helps deliver local food and services to underserved neighborhoods and low-income families. The organization has 55 community gardens, a “Veggie Mobile,” healthy stores, the Produce Project, a Splash Hunger campaign, and more.

The challenge specifically nominates individuals to film a 60-second video of themselves eating the hottest pepper they can tolerate. Participants are challenged to eat the pepper and talk about why they are participating in the challenge, the importance of local markets, and their personal values in healthy foods.

Once the pepper has been eaten, participants are asked to nominate two friends and post their videos on social media platforms. When posting, use the hashtags #HotPepperChallenge and #TurnUpTheHeat.

According to Stewart’s, the goal of the Capital Roots #HotPepperChallenge is raising awareness for healthy food access to all by stressing the importance of support local food systems in New York.