Marks & Spencer has unveiled its Christmas food range for 2026, featuring 300 new products and 400 returning favourites. The first items go on sale from September 2, but shoppers are already voicing a common complaint: too much pistachio.
Pistachio overload sparks shopper backlash
The festive lineup includes Pistachio Star Chocolate (£3), new Pistachio Muddles (£10), and Choc Marks Salted Blond Chocolate Pistachios, Shortbread and Cornflakes Minis (£12). The Big Daddy Advent Calendar (£12) also contains Big Daddy Pistachio Bites, alongside a Pistachio and Single Origin Chocolate Bombe (£12).
The abundance has not gone unnoticed on social media. One Instagram user wrote: 'Can we stop with the pistachio? Not everyone likes pistachio.' Another commented: 'I love pistachio, and even I think this is too much. It's putting me off!' A third added: 'The obsession with pistachio just needs to stop.'
Why is pistachio everywhere?
The pistachio craze stems from the Dubai chocolate bar, filled with crispy knafeh, pistachio cream, and tahini spread, first launched by UAE-based Fix Dessert Chocolatier in 2021. It went viral in 2023 after influencer Maria Vehera shared a TikTok video of herself trying it, which racked up over 120 million views.
Since then, brands have followed with their own versions, including Fox's 'Dubai Style' pistachio chocolate biscuits, Lindt's Dubai Style Chocolate, and a Terry's pistachio flavour that hit shelves last August. Searches for 'pistachio' on Waitrose.com jumped by 788% in spring 2025 compared with the same period the year before. Demand became so intense it led to a worldwide pistachio shortage in April 2025.
What else is in the range?
For those less keen on pistachio, M&S has plenty of other treats. New for 2026 are Percy Pig bags at £2, containing sugar-coated piglets, gingerbread men, stars and Christmas trees made with real fruit juice. The £8 Malt Balls Selection box offers a mix of milk, dark, white or blond chocolate crunch malt balls.
New biscuit tins include Spiced Gingerbread Biscuits in an M&S truck tin (£6) and a Chocolate Chunk Cookie Lenticular Tin with a naughty or nice elf design (£5). Returning favourites include Playful Penguins at £5, hand-decorated milk chocolate penguins filled with blond chocolate ganache, and the gingerbread and white chocolate cookies at £3.25, which previously placed third in Metro's ranking of the supermarket's viral cookie range.
Lifestyle editor Kristina Beanland said of the cookies: 'I love the aggressive sweetness of the white chocolate, and how it's complemented by the spiced gingerbread. It's just a match made in heaven… I've been known to eat all five of the pack in one sitting.'
The full list of products launching on September 2 includes The Original Gimme S'more Munch (£10), Malt Balls Selection (£8), Big Mix Tin (£12), Collection 100% Extra Virgin Olive Oil Crisps with Lobster (£3.90), Belgian Milk Chocolate Coated Crispy Chilli Peanuts (£3), British Hand Cooked Aberdeen Angus Beef & Mustard Crisps (£1.80), Choc Mini Marks Advent Calendar (£12), 85% Dark Chocolate Orangettes (£5), Chocolate Rodney the Reindeer Noses (£3.50), All Butter Plain & Chocolate Chip Shortbread Magical Projector (£10), Custard Cream Spread (£2.50), Collection Sticky Figgy Mustard (£5), Everything Sugar N Spice (£2), Malt & Caramel Cookie Pie (£3.50), 4 Rodney the Reindeer Pies (£3.50), Colin & Connie the Caterpillars Christmas Time (£2), Percy Pig Merry Percymas (£2), and Percy Pig Festive Fun (£2).
