The Chile Pepper Institute at New Mexico State University is the only institute in the world dedicated to the research and education of Capsicum peppers. The institute breeds new pepper varieties (including several record-holders for heat level), maintains seed banks of hundreds of chile varieties, and serves as the scientific centre for what New Mexico treats as a matter of cultural identity.
The institute's small museum and visitor centre explain the history of chile cultivation in the Southwest, the genetics of heat production, and the economic importance of the Hatch Valley to New Mexico's agricultural economy. The gift shop sells seeds, dried chiles, and sauces. For visitors with a serious interest in food culture and agriculture, this is one of the more distinctive stops in the region — there is genuinely nowhere else in the world where you can walk through research fields of experimental chile varieties and talk to the scientists who created them.
The institute hosts a Fiesta de Chile every October, timed to coincide with the harvest season, with cooking demonstrations, chile roasting, and the chance to taste varieties that never make it to commercial markets.