The #picklechallenge is one of the latest TikTok food trends to make the rounds on the internet, with the hashtag having over 246 million views on the platform which has led to a renaissance of the pickled gherkin as a popular snack choice. The challenge consists of eating Van Holten’s Pickle-in-a-Pouch, which comes in flavours such as Hot Mama and Sour Pickle, with the popularity of the trend being boosted by coverage from LadBible’s Snack Wars series.

Consumers are demanding new and interesting food flavours that are crave-worthy and shareable. 73% of consumers are more likely to visit a restaurant that offers new flavour profiles, 66% will spend more on a meal that allows them to try new tastes and 65% like trying new flavours occasionally. In addition, in 2020 65% of UK survey respondents aged 45 to 54 years old agreed that they liked to experiment with new things to eat.

The emergence of the pickle as a TikTok phenomenon nods to the role the platform plays in dictating food trends. At a time when 53% of Gen Y and 38% of Gen Z have ordered food from a restaurant after seeing it featured in a TikTok video, with 38% of survey respondents travelling further than they normally would to eat something they've discovered on the platform, social media has become a magnet for food experimentation and discovery.