The best North American airlines for healthy food and snacks, and why you’re better off bringing your own and eating before flying
Meals for the top four US and Canadian airlines serving Hong Kong – Delta, Air Canada, United and American Airlines – scored on calories, nutrition, menu innovation and transparency in annual survey, and their ‘best bets’ revealed
Food served on airlines tend to be more of a punchline than a pleasure. And yet, at 10,670 metres, even a forlorn-looking tray can serve as both entertainment and sustenance for a captive audience.
With that in mind, Charles Platkin, PhD, director of the New York City Food Policy Centre at Hunter College, sought to uncover just how healthy or unhealthy aeroplane food is, and the results are published in the Annual Airline Food Investigation, a survey he has conducted since 2000 (it became annual in 2009).
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For the survey, Platkin reached out to representatives with 12 major airlines to inquire about their meal and snack options. He ranks them based, in part, on calories, nutrition, menu innovation and transparency (some airlines are more candid than others about what’s in their food).
“They call me an airline food bully,” says Platkin, who is also founder of the site DietDetective.com. “I’m aggressive about it. People have choices about what airline they fly, but they don’t have choices about what they eat on that flight.”
Each airline is given a “health score” on a scale of one to five, with five being the highest. This year, Delta and Virgin America tied for the lead, with each scoring four points, and Air Canada tied for second with JetBlue (3.75 points). United Airlines scored 2.75 while American scored 2.5.
