New research reveals the ONE THING you should leave off your dating profile to increase matches

• New data that analysed dating app ‘likes’ finds that being a picky eater is a huge turn off for most UK singletons.

• Data shows Belfast singletons have the strongest ick towards picky eaters, with picky eater dating app profiles accounting for just 5% of the total likes generated, vs. 95% for food lover profiles.

• Londoners had the second strongest aversion to picky eaters, with profiles that admitted to being a picky eater accounting for just 15% of the total ‘likes’ generated.

• Scots are less adverse to picky eaters, with picky and non-picky dating profiles generating almost exactly the same amount of ‘likes’.

Whether it’s going sockless in shoes, having an Instagram account for their pet, or doing the infamous half-walk, half-run to catch a bus (cringe), Brits aren’t short when it comes to spotting icks in potential partners. And unfortunately, once you’ve seen one, there’s no going back.

With many first dates focusing on food, there are some key icks to bear in mind when firing up that dating app. Eating with their mouth open, not tipping and being rude to the waiting staff are up there with common first date icks, but new dating app data finds that being a picky eater is a HUGE turn off for most singletons in the UK right now.

The brains behind the new research, food box delivery service, HelloFresh, used popular dating apps to find out whether a picky eater or non-picky eater would receive the most ‘likes’.

The data collection found that picky eaters are in fact a turn off for dating app users, receiving just 30% of overall likes, whereas the food lover received 68%. This is over double the amount of likes as the picky eater.

Looking into regional data, Belfast singletons have the strongest ick towards picky eaters, with picky eater dating app profiles accounting for just 5% of the total likes generated, vs. 95% for food lover profiles.

Londoners had the second strongest aversion to picky eaters, with profiles admitting to being picky eaters accounting for just 15% of the total ‘likes’ generated in that region compared to 85% for the more advanced eater profile.

The data shows similar results in Cardiff, where the picky eater profile accounted for only 39% of the total ‘likes’ generated in that region vs. 61% for the advanced eater profile.

However, the research found that Scots were the least adverse to picky eaters, with the amount of dating profile ‘likes’ between the picky and non-picky eater profiles being practically identical [58 for food lover vs 59 for picky eater].

HelloFresh’s Senior Recipe Development Manager, Mimi Morley, commented: “Being a picky eater is like turning up to the cinema blindfolded — you don’t know what you’re missing out on!

“And sure, people’s taste in food isn’t everything, but according to this research, being deemed a ‘picky eater’ could see you miss out on that crucial ingredient in the recipe for romance.

“Experiencing the thrill of trying new dishes together and bonding over a shared love of a super niche dish is a failsafe way to break the ice. If you know your date is a picky eater, why not opt for something safe like Italian dishes or British foods, to start your culinary adventure together.”

For more recipe inspiration and date night recipes to try, head to hellofresh.co.uk.