Icelandic supermarkets are facing cucumber shortages due to a viral TikTok trend that has led to an unprecedented increase in demand. Social media influencers in the Nordic nation have been promoting a salad recipe featuring grated cucumbers, sesame oil, garlic, rice vinegar, and chilli oil. This surge in popularity has left local farmers struggling to meet the growing demand.
The trend originates from Canada, where TikToker Logan Moffitt, known as the “cucumber guy,” has been sharing innovative cucumber recipes. His signature line at the start of his videos is, “Sometimes, you just need to eat a whole cucumber.” With over 5.5 million followers, Moffitt has been consistently posting recipes since July, including variations that incorporate cream cheese, avocado, and smoked salmon.
Despite the influencer’s popularity, Icelandic experts are downplaying his role in the current shortages. Hagkaup stated that cucumber shortages are not unusual during this time of year, and while they reported a doubling in sales of ingredients like sesame oil and spices, the ongoing shortages cannot be attributed solely to the TikTok trend. We added one of his videos at the bottom but first:
Here’s Ryders favourite recipe right now
thin sliced cucumbers
can of tuna
mayo
sriracha
sesame oil
sesame seeds
rice vinegar
red onion