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Vegans on a Plane

by Leah Koenig · September 10th, 2008

The New York Times Dining Section today published a jeremiad of vegan traveler, Wayne Pacelle, who lamented the lack of vegan options at airports. I was once a vegan too, so I can sympathize with the feeling of being hungry, and surrounded by untouchable flesh and dairy-filled foods. But as I read through the article, I was underwhelmed by his argument – and by his anecdote about the mean security guards who tried to take away the peanut butter stashed in his bag.Last summer, I published a post on this very blog called, “Why I Love Bad Airplane Food.” The reason was precisely that it gave me the opportunity to ditch the greasy (though occasionally tempting) fare offered at the airport food court, and bring a meal from home that matches my food values, and that I had a decent shot of enjoying 35,000 miles in the air. Granted, I don’t fly nearly as much as Mr. Pacelle, but aside from nixing the juice box – packing for a plane trip needn’t be more complicated than packing lunch for the office.So, Mr. Pacelle – my charge to you is to quit whining and “Be (or rather make) the meal you want to eat in the world.“Check out my original post, “Why I Love Bad Airplane Food,” here.

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6 Responses to “Vegans on a Plane”

Michael Croland Says:
September 10th, 2008 at 10:14 pm
Leah, I agree with you that it’s great for most of us to plan in advance and take food with us. :-) But although you alluded to this, it’s important to point out Wayne Pacelle’s unique situation. As it says to the left of the article, he’s the president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States and he travels at least two weeks out of every month. That volume of traveling can make it hard to prepare for since he’s always on the run! As such, eating on the road isn’t as tough for vegans as he makes it out to be.

I’ve found that if you’re not able to take food with you, vegan food at airports isn’t super exciting but can usually make for a decent light meal. In a worst-case scenario, it’s not hard to get a salad or fruit (I know, not exactly local, organic, or in-season produce!) and a bag of protein-packed nuts or seeds. I try to think of it as the least interesting (but adequate nevertheless) meal of the day and get by OK!

Finally, here’s a great resource compiled by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine about airports with healthy and vegetarian-friendly dining options: http://www.pcrm.org/health/rep.....ew_06.html (or http://tinyurl.com/2rm6r3)
Michael Croland Says:
September 10th, 2008 at 10:22 pm
P.S. I love the title of this post! =)
Kerr Says:
September 11th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
I was at the airport this past week (SEA) and while I’m not vegan (or vegetarian) myself, I noticed that not one of the preprepared salad options came without meat, let alone without cheese. There were a few hot foods, like pizza and cheesy burritos and cheesy sandwiches, that didn’t have meat. Vegans, I presume, are consigned to a bag of nuts and a banana.

It reminded me as well of how hard it is for my friend with fatal peanut allergies to get on board a plane. Even though airlines generally don’t serve peanuts anymore, in an enclosed cabin at thirty thousand feet, Pacelle opening a peanut-butter sandwich in first class could cause my friend’s death from anaphalaxis in the last row. She must assume that all prepackaged food contains some item that has been co-processed with peanuts and may therefore kill her.

Yes, airlines and airports need to consider a variety of dietary needs, especially if they’re going to be using nonsensical TSA regulations to enforce the purchase of overpriced packaged food at airports.
jillrenee from boston Says:
September 15th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
packing food for the trip away from home is all fine and yummy, but my problem is on the way back.

(i’m almost vegan, plus can’t have a whole host of foods due to a sensitive stomach and migraine triggers)

On the way back, I don’t have access to my kitchen; am usually in a strange place so don’t know where to get food; and/or I’m already underfed due to poor eating in the area.

one trick is to get a doctor’s note saying you can bring adequate food and beverages past security due to a restrictive diet; that’s helped.

also, if you just don’t mention the food; oftentimes security won’t even notice it in your bag
DB Says:
September 17th, 2008 at 6:43 pm
I wish I could go vegan. I tried years ago, and lasted only two weeks before I was forced to return to being a carnivore. I got really weak during that fortnight; had no energy for running or lifting weights.

At least I tried.