Cucumber shortages in Iceland blamed on TikTok craze: 'First time we have experienced something like this'
Farmers 'unable to keep up with demand' as TikToker shares 'super-simple, easy-to-follow and fast recipes'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
A Canadian TikTok creator whose viral cucumber salad recipes have received millions of views and shares is being blamed for a shortage of the vegetable in Iceland, the BBC reported.
TikTok creator Logan Moffitt, who shares videos with his 6 million followers under the username "@LogagM," started making cucumber salad content in July.
He told Fox News Digital he suspects his videos are popular because they're "super-simple, easy-to-follow and fast recipes," he said via email.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
WOMAN MAKES SOURDOUGH BREAD MID-FLIGHT IN VIRAL TIKTOK VIDEO: SEE IT
His recipes mainly follow the same basic steps. Moffitt holds a cucumber to the camera and says, "Sometimes you need to eat an entire cucumber. Let me show you the best way to do it." He then slices the cucumber into a deli container, using a mandoline slicer.
In some videos, Moffitt references the "demure" TikTok trend and reminds viewers to "be mindful" of their mandolines.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
Logan Moffitt's recipes have received millions of views on TikTok and are partially blamed for a shortage of cucumbers in Iceland. He told Fox News Digital his favorite is the "salmon cream cheese" recipe. (TikTok: @LogagM)
Moffitt, who is in his 20s, then inserts various ingredients into the deli container before closing it and shaking it. The videos end with him taking a bite of his salad.
Moffitt told Fox News Digital he'd been making cucumber salads for a while, but "just recently started posting them" in an attempt to experiment with different types of content.
They're seasonal, too, as summer is "the perfect time to have some cucumber salad," he noted.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
While many of his cucumber salad variations are inspired by Asian foods, Moffitt said he's been inspired to transform other foods into salads, too.
"I usually think of ideas for the salads from pre-existing food: jalapeño popper cucumbers, chipotle cucumbers, sushi cucumbers," he said.
HONEY DEUCE, US OPEN'S SIGNATURE COCKTAIL, OWES ITS ORIGIN TO HONEYDEW MELON BALLS
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
His favorite, he added, is the "salmon cream cheese" cucumber.
One variation of that recipe has received more than 32 million views on TikTok in the month since it was posted.
Moffitt's recipes on social media all begin as he slices up an entire cucumber into a container. (iStock)
Rather than use specific recipes and ingredient amounts, Moffitt relies on his cooking experience to craft his salads.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
"I think through a lot of practice and time spent in the kitchen you grow to learn what quantities are important for your own taste," he said.
He said that he "cooked dinner every day for my family and watched a lot of YouTube chefs throughout my childhood."
"I don't even like cucumbers but still find myself watching the whole video every time," said one TikTok user.
For Moffitt, "focusing on your taste, rather than an exact recipe, makes cooking super fun."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
Said one TikTok user in response to Moffitt's "salmon bagel cucumber" recipe, "You've somehow romanticized cucumbers and I love that for you."
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER
"I don't even like cucumbers but still find myself watching the whole video every time," said another TikTok user.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
The popular recipes are partly to blame for a shortage of cucumbers in Iceland, the BBC reported in late August.
Moffitt's cucumber salad recipe videos have charmed even those who admittedly "don't even like cucumbers." (TikTok: @LogagM)
The Horticulturists' Sales Company (SFG), Iceland's farmers' association, told the BBC that there were shortages of the vegetable and that farmers "have been unable to keep up with spiraling demand" for cucumbers.
One Icelandic supermarket chain told the BBC that cucumber sales had doubled since the salad recipes became popular.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
The sales of other ingredients used in Moffitt's recipes, including sesame oil and chili oil, have also increased, the BBC reported.
The cucumber shortages in Iceland should resolve themselves before too long, the BBC also noted.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
Other ingredients used in Moffitt's popular recipes, including sesame oil, are flying off the shelves in Iceland, the BBC said. (@Logagm )
Kristín Linda Sveinsdóttir, who works in marketing for the SFG, told the BBC that the viral cucumber salad trend came at the same time that many farmers are not producing large amounts of cucumbers.
VIRAL TIKTOK TREND HAS BRIDES SHOCKING THEIR HUSBANDS WITH BRAND NEW LOOK ON WEDDING DAY
"Everything is happening at the same time," Sveinsdóttir told the BBC. "This is the first time we have experienced something like this."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
There likely would not have been a shortage had the cucumber salad TikTok recipes gained popularity earlier in the summer, Sveinsdóttir told the BBC.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Moffitt himself posted about the shortages in an Aug. 26 TikTok video.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
"A lot of you guys have been asking me how many cucumbers I buy in a week, so let's count them out," he said in a video captioned, "Cucumber haul!"
In the video, Moffitt revealed that he had purchased 17 cucumbers that week.
"Seventeen cucumbers," he said, holding the vegetables.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
For more Lifestyle articles, visit www.foxnews.com/lifestyle
"This is why there's no cucumbers left in Iceland. I bought them all," he joked.