Marks & Spencer mocked for selling £2.65 slices of cucumber in bid to cash in on TikTok trend

Marks & Spencer has been derided for selling sliced cucumber for £2.65 – cashing in on a TikTok trend for salads in jars.

M&S’s trendy Shake-A-Cucumber pots come with a dressing to toss and shake over the pieces, similar to a craze on the social media site.

But customers have accused M&S of cashing in on the fad as it sells small cucumbers, which contain a similar amount of veg to the shake-pots – for just 75p.

The mark-up between the humble cucumber and the M&S pots represents an increase of 228 per cent.

One customer said on Facebook: ‘It takes a minute to cut up a cucumber and put it in a bag.’

Another added: ‘Tell me people aren’t so lazy now that they can’t cut up a cucumber.’ A third moaned: ‘Just slice your own and put it in some sour cream and dill.’

M&S is not the only store selling pre-prepared fruit and veg for well over its raw cost.

We found mango chunks at Co-op costing 227 per cent more than a single fruit, and pineapple chunks costing 355 per cent more than a pineapple at Tesco. And grape pots at Tesco are 210 per cent costlier than a regular bunch. 

You could buy three Pink Lady apples weighing 390g (excluding cores) for £1.50 at Morrisons, whereas 310g of apple slices are £2.50. Seeds from a £1.33 pomegranate from Asda weigh around 230g, but a 200g pack of prepared ones costs £2.14.

Consumer champion Martyn James said: ‘Selling pre-prepped vegetables and fruit that’s easy to sort out by yourself is a lazy tax.

‘Some might say it’s a foolish tax as well because it’s unnecessary. I encourage people to slice their own vegetables and to look at frozen ones as well.

‘It’s ridiculous to pay for something that goes into tubs in unnecessary plastic that you don’t want or need.’

M&S said: ‘We developed our Feeling Spicy Shake-A-Cucumber in response to customer demand for healthy snacking on the go and it has already become a bestseller and a viral hit with customers.’