If you like your nuts served with a side of airline allegiance, there’s some great news…
In this post:
United Airlines nuts are now on sale!
A few weeks ago I wrote about how American Airlines’ first class nuts were on sale directly to consumers, and now United Airlines’ first class nuts are on sale as well.
You’ve gotta love that the nut company behind this put out a press release with the following title:
“GNS Foods Now Selling Elite Status Airline Nut Mixes at Near Cost”
Hah!
For the past two years GNS Foods, based in Arlington, Texas, has been supplying United Airlines’ premium cabin nuts. However, with coronavirus, United Airlines stopped serving nuts as of March to reduce contact between passengers and flight attendants. As a result, GNS Foods has more than 30,000 pounds of excess nuts… that’s a lot of nuts!
Nuts as previously served on United Airlines
As Kim Peacock, owner of GNS Foods, describes the situation:
“Not only are we left with bags of mixes, we are also left with the raw ingredients and ingredient contracts from the suppliers. We were asked to maintain United’s costs on their mixes for one year. In order to do that, we had to sign raw ingredient contracts for one year. Now we’re left with these contracts. If nut prices rise, then you can sell the contract at a profit. Unfortunately, that’s not what happened. Nut prices fell, and the raw ingredient suppliers are looking to us to make up the difference! The other question is, ‘Where to go with all of these nuts?'”
Peacock believes these will be “scooped” up in no time:
“This is a deal of a lifetime where specialty nuts are concerned. Scoop them up fast! Even though we have a lot of them, I foresee calls from retailers looking to buy by the pallet load.”
How expensive are United Airlines nuts?
United Airlines nuts are being offered in two varieties, sold in two pound bags:
- There’s the Elite Status Nut Mix, which is a blend of whole cashews and whole almonds ($7.99)
- There’s the Elite Status Hawaii Mix, which is a blend of whole cashews, whole almonds, and large whole macadamia nuts ($10.99)
While the nut prices are reasonable, shipping is very expensive. For example, shipping just one bag of nuts to Miami with the cheapest shipping option adds $14.97 to the order total, so shipping costs nearly twice as much as the nuts.
Bottom line
I guess we’re now learning that American Airlines and United Airlines have the same nut supplier. What a terrible situation that the company is in, like so many companies that rely on the airline industry to pay their bills.
The price to buy United nuts is extremely reasonable, but the catch is that shipping is expensive. You’d think they’d be able to find a way to lower that quite a bit.
Nuts aren’t the only airline goodies we’ve seen for sale during the pandemic — British Airways gin and Qantas pajamas have also been available, though sold out pretty quickly.
So, who plans on picking up some United Airlines nuts?
Is it for real that no shipping costs in the USA?
Elite Status Nuts (United Airlines) and First Class Nuts ship for free in the US.
Not sure why several comments are saying that there are shipping charges. If you order anything other than Elite Status Nuts and First Class nuts - then they do charge for shipping.
$7.99 for 2 lbs of Elite Status Nut Mix and $20.24 shipping?? No thanks.
Even the
I just ordered a 3 bag mix- 1 first class mixed and 2 Aloha mix. 1.25 lb each, $31.50.
In my experience, these taste better than store bought. Besides, what a great way to support vendor who is hurting from pandemic and reminisce about all my flights in first class and to Hawaii! Great memories of the good old days in the Friendly Skies!
Please think about donating a portion if not all to all the displaced fire victims of the California lightening wildfires. Some of these people have nothing but the clothes they were wearing when they were evacuated.
Thank you
Rebecca gillette
Rodeo ca
tasted great.. well ship to Europe is out of the question I guess LOL
Going forward maybe airlines should stick to single-portion packed nut mixes in for example 20g-bags such as the ones supplied by Kimber Foods, Denmark (www.kimberfoods.com). From what I understand they are already in a lot of Scandinavian offices, boardrooms, bars and restaurants as a hygienic alternative to nutsnacks being served in a small bowl.
Much more reasonable than the price for American's nuts.
'thats a lot of nuts'
that's what she said.
I don't know where you're getting your information. I placed 2 orders within the past week and didn't pay any shipping charges.
I don't know where you are getting your information. I have placed two orders for American Airlines nuts ($30 and $60) and have not paid a penny in shipping either time.
These are salted, correct?
Good article and good plug for a business that has obviously hit tough times. I'm picking some up. Thanks for the heads up.
Donate them to causes that can use them. Take a right off!
They had free shipping when they sold the AA nuts. Ordered some to continetal Europe, only to have my order cancelled a couple of days later. I'll pass this time.
How about suggesting they let their loyal customers with frequent flyer miles they can't use buy nuts with miles???? I've got many many miles and can't go anywhere . . . .
Buy large quantities and the prices will be cheaper than Costco.
Ollies has the stroopwaffels and the boxed apple juice aa/dl use.
The AA nuts are better. They have pistachios.
On a related note, I received the Amex $5 shop small credit when ordering the AA first class nuts. I think that offer is still available.
I sell a lot of items on eBay. It would seem they could sell the nuts and just use the USPS flat rate priority mail bubble wrap envelopes. The cost would be under eight dollars because it doesn’t matter about the weight. Their motto is if it fits it ships. I use it all the time when I sell items that are over a pound and upwards of 4 to 5 pounds in that flat rate padded envelope. It’s under eight dollars to ship nationwide.
jokes*
@mia
Probably because the bags are 2 lbs. each. LOL.
UA never had any nuts.
Finally UA is selling out their execs.
Goodness, the jijes just write themselves!!!
@mia
$7.99 is for 2lbs...
Interesting that the AA ones come with free shipping (from the same vendor.) I wonder if AA subsidized the shipping or something.
Waaaay back when, the New Yorker had this cartoon for their caption contest:
https://www.cartooncollections.com/cartoon?searchID=CC121949
Now you, too, can be a naked guy with warm nuts, in the privacy of your own home.
Put them on sale at airports so buyers can pick them up.
Never mind nuts, with so many quiet airports around the world sure their must be a lot of Toblerone due to hit the shops. No matter where in the world you are it's in the duty free shop.
@mia, its $7.99 for 2 lbs, or $4 per lb! :)
@Ben - Do us all a solid and ask the vendor for a discount code for your loyal readers and they'll have nuts flying off the e-service cart!
As a Delta loyalist, I wonder if the good folks at Biscoff are suffering a similar hit to sales.
@mia
FWIW, those prices are for 2 lbs, not 1. That's where he/she got the math.
That's absolutely nuts! An uncountable number of small and medium-sized companies around the country is intentionally driven out of business by these ineffective Wu-Flu prevention regulations. Meanwhile the big near-monopolies such as Walmart and Amazon who pay millions of Dollars for political lobbying are reaching new stock-highs every day.
@swag
The nuts sold at 7.99 per lb, then adds $1.80 shipping at 10 lb order, still comes out to be $9.79 per lb - just how your math is done to bring the cost to $5.80/lb? by subtracting the shipping cost instead of adding? LOL.
For comparison, Walgreens have the brandname Diamond 16 oz whole almond on sale every few weeks at $5.49 per lb. CVS own private label of nuts beat Planters by...
@swag
The nuts sold at 7.99 per lb, then adds $1.80 shipping at 10 lb order, still comes out to be $9.79 per lb - just how your math is done to bring the cost to $5.80/lb? by subtracting the shipping cost instead of adding? LOL.
For comparison, Walgreens have the brandname Diamond 16 oz whole almond on sale every few weeks at $5.49 per lb. CVS own private label of nuts beat Planters by a mile in terms of variety / taste / freshness - they often come at below $5 for Deluxe Mixed Nuts (can choose between including pistacho or including macadamia among the almond / cashew / walnut / pecan... 100% cashew is below $6.
We buy our nuts from either Walgreens or CVS on their weekly sale ad - beats anywhere you shop for those. Besides these are much fresher than the Costco or the inventories for the airlines!
Jamie!!! Absolutely I will take some discounted Krug.
Shipping costs get more reasonable with larger orders. 5 bags (10 lbs) ships for $18. So with shipping, that's $5.80/lb for the almond/cashew mix. That's a hard price to beat at your local supermarket or even Costco.
Waiting for free shipping code:)
Seems like it would be cheaper to just buy the nuts separately and mix them on your own, but maybe that's not truly replicating the United experience. Perhaps they should also sell some stroopwafels.
Can’t wait so get some cheap Krug Ben :-)
Nuts
I think thats why we have supermarkets - no Thankyou I will pass