A soft or slippery condition, one of the most common forms of spoilage in
making pickles, is the result of bacterial action. It always occurs when
pickles are exposed above the brine and very often when the brine is too
weak to prevent the growth of spoilage organisms. To prevent it keep the
pickles well below the brine and the brine at the proper strength. To
keep pickles for more than a very few weeks a brine should contain 10
per cent of salt. Once pickles have become soft or slippery as a result
of bacterial action no treatment will restore them to a normal condition.