Opposition Leader Bill Shorten recently made small talk with a local shopper at Queanbeyan Woolworths about lettuce, an incident that has spurred a hilarious frenzy on social media with people calling the exchange highly awkward.

#pmlive Bloody hell. How embarrassing Shorten doing the shopping with a family. What a wet lettuce !!!!! — Dennis (@ciandante) January 12, 2016

Pictured: Shorten's press flack choosing a favourite type of lettuce pic.twitter.com/Vc5MluMC4l — Rob Stott (@Rob_Stott) January 12, 2016

Hard to believe Bill Shorten was locked inside that Woolworths ALL NIGHT. #lettuce — Adam Liaw (@adamliaw) January 12, 2016

"I like all sorts of varieties of lettuce" Shorten says. Pick a side, already. — Josh Taylor (@joshgnosis) January 12, 2016

Bill Shorten's small talk on bread and butter politics: What's your favourite type of lettuce? #auspol https://t.co/RqRwbYqZ9S — Stephanie Anderson (@stephanieando) January 12, 2016

The vine above has gone viral, reaching over 220,000 loops.

Shorten held his first press conference of 2016 in Queanbeyan where he challenged Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to a debate on the GST.

Determined to put GST on the forefront of politics, Shorten was filmed chatting with a local family as they did their weekly shopping.

The exchange grew more awkward as the conversation persisted, with Shorten adding items to the family's trolley on his own accord.

TV gold: Man-of-the-people Bill Shorten asks a member of the public "What's your favourite type of lettuce?" https://t.co/eQ1arddh6s #auspol — Tim Burrowes (@mumbrella) January 12, 2016

Shorten isn't the first Australian politician to be the victim of vegetable based humour.

Last year, former Prime Minister Tony Abbott was filmed eating a raw onion, skin and all.

The video spurred a pop culture spectacle, culiminating with members of the public "putting out their onions" in his support during the Liberal party leadership spill, that ended his run as prime minister.