Here’s a negative airline story that doesn’t involve Southwest Airlines, which I’d say is a nice change of pace this week…
Eurowings serves expired food
OMAAT reader Adrian flew today on Eurowings flight 7406 from Hamburg (HAM) to Paris (CDG). For those not familiar, Eurowings is Lufthansa’s regional low cost carrier subsidiary. He was flying in BIZclass, the name of Eurowings’ premium cabin.
One of the primary benefits of flying in BIZclass is a complimentary meal, though perhaps that was less of a perk today. The meal on this flight consisted of a tapas meat platter in a box. Only after eating most of the meal did he look more carefully at the box, where he found out that the food had expired.
The food was 18 days past its “best before” date — the date listed was December 11, while the flight took place on December 29.
Goodness gracious. It’s one thing to eat a yogurt or a bag of pretzels a few days past the expiration date, but I wouldn’t want to be served meat that’s this far past its expiration.
Admittedly Eurowings’ inflight magazine talks about reducing food waste, though serving food 18 days past its “best by” date probably isn’t the ideal way to go about that. 😉
How could something like this happen?
Serving a meal this far past its intended date is kind of shocking. I can appreciate how packaged snacks could end up on multiple flights, and once in a while maybe the date isn’t checked. But when we’re talking about a meat platter, you’d think they’d be a bit more aware of the expiration date.
How exactly did this happen? Was this catered onto multiple flights and not consumed, and just kept ending up in the catering facility? Was this somehow lost in the catering facility, and only found a few weeks later, and then catered onto a flight without anyone checking the date?
I don’t recall ever looking at the expiration date of what I’m consuming on a plane, though maybe it’s time that I do.
I’d say this is pretty surprising, though at the same time I always like to emphasize that airline operations are ridiculously complicated. So much goes into making airlines run smoothly, and there are countless moving parts. When you consider the complexity involved, the airline industry is one of the most well run in the world (broadly speaking, obviously there are sometimes exceptions). So just like any other industry, it’s not surprising that sometimes things go wrong.
Bottom line
An OMAAT reader was flying BIZclass on Eurowings, and was served an expired meal. The meal was supposed to be consumed by December 11, but was still being served on a flight on December 29. That’s pretty bad.
What’s your take on this expired meal, and how do you think it happened?
It's a bit unusual, but I can't see the harm here.
Best before is an industry-wide regulation in Europe, and has heaps of buffer time added. Eggs produced and stored in cold temperatures in Norway have the same best before date as eggs stored in warm temperatures in southern europe, etc.
Most chefs I knw buy meat in shops after "best before" date, and loads of newspaper articles proclaim that for many meats like beef, it should be "best after"
it state "best before" and not "expired on".
Too bad that the "Best Before" is so misunderstood.
The Food Bank publishes a list of the meaning of "best before" so that the homeless can understand that it is NOT AN EXPIRY DATE. Some people would rather starve than eat perfectly healthy meals.
This particular post is pure sensationalism and should be ignored.
But he was in BIZNESS class. He is not just a discount pleeb. He is an important, in his mind, pleeb.
Completely unsurprising if you judge the appalling quality of food even on business class by major airlines. I have posted pictures of the extremely mediocre food served by BA on my journeys from London to Mumbai. Ditto my experience on India’s former national airline, now operated by its most highly respected national company, quite shameful. Spouse traveled Premium on Virgin earlier this month to Delhi and came away disappointed with the poor quality food. Is...
Completely unsurprising if you judge the appalling quality of food even on business class by major airlines. I have posted pictures of the extremely mediocre food served by BA on my journeys from London to Mumbai. Ditto my experience on India’s former national airline, now operated by its most highly respected national company, quite shameful. Spouse traveled Premium on Virgin earlier this month to Delhi and came away disappointed with the poor quality food. Is it impossible for airlines to do better. Now, defunct Jetairways used to serve superb fare and service by cabin crew to match.
What doesn’t kill you… is good enough for LCCs everywhere.
Best before doesn't mean expired. Calm down and stop creating hysteria where there is no room for this. Sure it doesn't look good but there are other things in the world to worry about.
How the clowns in the comment section doenst realize that for food, it does matter what the sell before date is...
Meaning when it's last that, it no longer qualifies as safe to be sold for eating.
So no, it is NOT safe. The moron that claims to work for food safety in the US doesn't even realize that... No wonder food sucks so much here.
The date shown is "BEST BEFORE" not sell by. Get serious before you slag others with your misinformation.
Though you are not expired, you are past your best by date.
Best before is NOT an expiry date. Americans
Lucky, before you get sued, just realized that a "sell by" or "best before" date are not the same as an expiration date. FYI
Echoing other posts, in many jurisdictions a 'best before' date is only related to quality. If there was a food safety issue then it would have a 'use by' date. Not sure if this is the case in EU. Still, is not a great look.
Very sorry for your terrible experience. Is the company offering compensation. . I feel for you and airline staff .
The "best before" date really has no meaning and is not an indicator of food quality or safety. Consumer Reports wrote a whole article about it a few years ago. https://www.consumerreports.org/food/how-dated-food-labels-contribute-to-food-waste/
Best before is not the same as expiration.
Is this the same Germanic airline with the mentally ill co pilot that crashed his plane intentionally a few years ago? Oh wow.
What a moronic comment
Is the same Marina Kirchens who left her trash in the street a few years ago? Oh wow.
I’m sorry, this article is a misstep:
In Europe, manufacturers may include a Best By date in addition to Consume Before. These have different meanings, as pointed out by others.
In fact, some countries are now discouraging the use of Best By, as it usually leads to discarding perfectly safe food.
This is a non-issue.
Indeed. Many items in Europe no longer have best by on them.
What do you expect from an airline that only pays EU261 compensations if you litigate and reimbursed customers of cancelled flights due to the pandemic about 10 months after … Compliance with legal requirements is not their strength.
Ben made a claim with them, was paid and didn’t litigate. You read a few stories and assume it’s the same for every country. Germans are also far more litigious than Americans. They have insurance which allows them free legal representation. It’s easier for German carriers to pay than bear the burden of any additional fees.
Just my personal experience: None of my EU261 claims to any LH group carrier was paid without litigation. But all were paid all of the sudden, once I filled litigation.
As for ticket refunds, they were only paid once the government provided an emergency loan, in which refunding cancelled tickets was a condition.
So in the case of LH group the only thing which makes them comply, is government intervention.
One person. Yawn.
Its all crap everywhere why even bother on a short hop
And compared to most American carriers it’s an improvement
I formerly worked for a couple of European low cost airlines as a pilot, including 2 of the biggest ones today. This thing happens all the time, and gets way, way worse. I've seen food that's been expired for nearly 10 years still stocked in the aircraft. It is totally normal practice for the low cost airlines, there is no control to check for old food. It is the primary reason I abhor buy-on-board food...
I formerly worked for a couple of European low cost airlines as a pilot, including 2 of the biggest ones today. This thing happens all the time, and gets way, way worse. I've seen food that's been expired for nearly 10 years still stocked in the aircraft. It is totally normal practice for the low cost airlines, there is no control to check for old food. It is the primary reason I abhor buy-on-board food offerings. It is nearly impossible to control and the airline even has an economic incentive to avoid doing it.
"But the authorities surely have rules in place?" you might ask. In practice no. Food inspectors can't get through the security checkpoints at airports, and even if they can, there is ambiguity about what country has jurisdiction on a foreign registered aircraft. Aircraft hop around all over Europe and airlines increasingly hide behind daughter companies registered in different countries. It is the wild west, and this is the EU I am talking about here!
The bottom line is Eurowings (and Lufthansa frankly) are the bottom of the barrell in Business class.
Why would anyone fly the dump that is Eurowings?
I am not getting into the discussion of right or wrong, but the "best before" date is not the same as an "expiration" or a "use by" date. Most times, the item is just fine to be consumed even long after the "best before" date.
In this case, I am sure the meat was just fine considering the amount of nitrates and preservatives used, perhaps with a slight deviation in taste. More worryingly, why would anyone consume such disgusting processed meats products?
Serrano ham is generally dry-cured with salt. No nitrates, nitrites, or preservatives are generally added. It's the low water activity and the salt that prevents microbiological growth. In the business, it's what we call "minimally processed".
Funny enough, a bunch of my colleagues recently flew from Hamburg to Frankfurt on Lufthansa’s Business Class and all got the shitz after consuming the on-board food…
Fairytales with Chris
Denial with Endre, coming up after Fairy tales with Chris
Zzz…
I work in the travel catering industry and the standards for food handling are very high. There are SOP for food handling and such incidents should not be taken lightly. I hope the airline will thoroughly look into their FIFO method. I am surprised to not read any statement on behalf of the concerned airline. Cost cutting with compromise in food safety is not a good option for businesses.
I’m surprised by the number of people defending the airline here. Of course “Best Before” is not the same as “Use By”, but serving even processed meats 18 days - nearly 3 weeks - after the best before date is not good practice in a business that relies on mass consumption. If this was a one off, one staff member didn’t notice the dates, I might understand. But if the airline or there caterers are...
I’m surprised by the number of people defending the airline here. Of course “Best Before” is not the same as “Use By”, but serving even processed meats 18 days - nearly 3 weeks - after the best before date is not good practice in a business that relies on mass consumption. If this was a one off, one staff member didn’t notice the dates, I might understand. But if the airline or there caterers are making a practice of this, they will eventually make someone quite ill. it’s bad practice, and it risks passenger safety - even if by a very small margin. I’d be unwilling to ever fly Eurowings again if they responded to this with anything but an apology and assurance they will work to ensure they prevent mistakes like this in future. This is not a matter of preventing food waste, it’s a matter of safety and reliability for passengers.
Processed? Come on, this is vacuum-packed cured ham. It can be stored in room temperature.
I opened a package of iberico ham a couple of days ago. "Best before" was in 2020. Smelt fine. Was a bit crystalised some places, but perfectly good.
Best before is a guarantee that the full taste profile is perfectly good until at least that date. It's not with food safety to do, that's "use by" or "last consumption date"....
Processed? Come on, this is vacuum-packed cured ham. It can be stored in room temperature.
I opened a package of iberico ham a couple of days ago. "Best before" was in 2020. Smelt fine. Was a bit crystalised some places, but perfectly good.
Best before is a guarantee that the full taste profile is perfectly good until at least that date. It's not with food safety to do, that's "use by" or "last consumption date". After the "best before" date you might see some degradation in taste.
If it was frozen and there was no sign of discoloration in the meat, it was safe to eat. My credentials: 35 years in food safety, qualified in multiple Global Food Safety Initiative standards, food safety auditor, and former meat inspector for USDA.
"If and If." Are we paying for that roll of the dice? Is that what it comes down to in that the consumer should just inspect the meat themselves for any signs and then pray it was kept frozen? I don't pay for a leap of faith or my self survey of the situation. Sorry. No more than I pay for a flight where I am supposed to do a walk around and inspect the engines and fuselage.
Only 3% of food-related illnesses are caused by incidents at the manufacturer and packager. 70% are caused by improper preparation by consumers. The manufacturers make it as safe as possible (and I make sure of that). It's up to the consumers to apply a little basic knowledge.
So, someone who used to work for the USDA is stating exactly what the Food Standards Agency of the UK is saying. Unlike others who do not write based on real facts.
You totally missed the point....
Which one? The one on your head?
This article’s title is completely misleading! It was absolutely not expired food. If this person really had such a huge issue with it, why not take it directly with the airline? Learn the terminology first.
Best before: it refers to the manufacturer statement that the product’s quality and/or flavor is at its peak/best when consumed before that particular date. Nothing to do with food safety but about food quality. This is according to the...
This article’s title is completely misleading! It was absolutely not expired food. If this person really had such a huge issue with it, why not take it directly with the airline? Learn the terminology first.
Best before: it refers to the manufacturer statement that the product’s quality and/or flavor is at its peak/best when consumed before that particular date. Nothing to do with food safety but about food quality. This is according to the Food Standards Agency of the UK.
Remind me to never eat at your house. I bet you are one of those, "If it doesn't smell bad, it's ok" kind of people.
No need to remind you. Would never even think of having someone like you over at all. Are you one of those “oh waiter, there is a fly in my soup, I demand 100 million dollars as compensation!” or “a bit of the lettuce is a little brown and I demand 100 million points as compensation from the airline”
Which is exactly the right way to go about it? It really does seem like you don’t unterstand the meaning of “best before”?
No, it seems you do not comprehend the meaning of it. You probably still think it is about food safety. Anyway, my original and main point of it all was that the title was misleading. Expired food it was not. Should they serve it in any cabin, business class or not? No.
In the United States, only baby food actually expires per government direction.
Often dates stick around because consumer expect them and find them reassuring, or because producers (think milk) need people to constantly buy.
Still, transparency is not great here!
This is Ridiculous. The caterer is at fault
EXPIRED, EXPIRED, EXPIRED, EXPIRED, EXPIRED
The item was likely in a freezer until defrosted for the flight, so the date would really only apply if the food was refrigerated since it arrived from the supplier. 14-day spoilt meats would show discolouration if not a mild like or slime substance. Is there a photo of the actual contents?
I am almost certain that this hasn't food seen this inside of a freezer at any point since leaving the factory. Common practice for these outfits is to load it onto the aircraft and leave it there until sold. These low-cost configured aircraft don't have freezers or fridges, and are anyway powered off at night.
Nah, at least for Eurowings that's not right. All the aircrafts get catered once a Day, specifically during the night stops . In the catering facilities they fill up the trolleys and ( usually) sort out expired or broken things . Sure, it's not nice to find anything that's below expected quality or even expired, but mistakes can happen . Human error is a real thing .
Probably won't do you any harm to eat it but it doesn't look good for the airline to serve it!
Serrano ham is very high in sodium so would be well preserved for weeks, if not months after a "best before" date.
I guess catering company has an issue here, as they delivered the meal, not Germanwings!
That is atrocious. Something like this should never happen, given how far expired the meat was. No excuses for this, regardless of the complications. If you are in the food business, the product served has to be fresh.
Just flew EW BizClass from COP to DUS.
Nothing more but a joke. The only positive aspect was the crew. They were really nice.
They did not stock any hot items. I was not surprised as I read reviews indicating that in the Aspire Lounge before. It was a last hour booking so I had no time to do research before. I assumed that the onboard product would be similar to Lufthansa. Stupid assumption.
...Just flew EW BizClass from COP to DUS.
Nothing more but a joke. The only positive aspect was the crew. They were really nice.
They did not stock any hot items. I was not surprised as I read reviews indicating that in the Aspire Lounge before. It was a last hour booking so I had no time to do research before. I assumed that the onboard product would be similar to Lufthansa. Stupid assumption.
It started with the lounge. You do not have access to the SAS Lounge but only to the Aspire Lounge. So no value added for PP holders. Aspire lounge only hot item was an onion soup which tasted awful. Checked out Carlsberg lounge later when it was less crowded in the hope for hot food but was disappointed. At least some nice salads where available.
Back to EW. The crew then offered me a noodle soup which I saw being prepared before. It felt as if it was the soup of one of the crew members. Later I found it in the onboard menu but only as an prmoting ad and without prices. Weird.
I insisted to get the cheese sandwich as well. Was extremely lucky to sit in 1C because the guy behind me did not get the sandwich. Although no one else in row 1 took any food, they did run out of cheese sandwiches.
Then there is no curtain seprating BizClass. Hence, a couple of passengers where waiting in the row to visit the restroom...
Cash prices were around 390 Euro for Biz Class and 200 Euro for Economy Basic. I "burned" 25k M&M miles + 22 Euros. I would not spend more than 20 Euro for Biz Class after this flight, so it was a pretty loosy redemption. But the M&M also sets the path to a major devaluation so it is fine to burn the remaining miles and get rid of it.
Sorry for the wrong airport code, I meant CPH-DUS.
While I appreciate the concern and think it was worth noting, I think this post may dramatize the potential harm of food served after a “best by” date, which in turn furthers what I think may be an unhealthy narrative that leads to unconscionable food waste by the developed world in a world where food insecurity is rampant. I’d like to note that some of the finest restaurants in the world, like in the microcosm...
While I appreciate the concern and think it was worth noting, I think this post may dramatize the potential harm of food served after a “best by” date, which in turn furthers what I think may be an unhealthy narrative that leads to unconscionable food waste by the developed world in a world where food insecurity is rampant. I’d like to note that some of the finest restaurants in the world, like in the microcosm of sanity that is Copenhagen, intentionally prepare their dishes wish food thrown out by grocery stores because it has passed the “best by” date. To say their food is edible is of course an understatement.
Humans evolve. We have learned to not eat trash. Sorry. This is not the 16th century and we are scouring and accepting trash as food. You want to eat trash, that's fine. But I will not eat processed crap that is past its posted expiration. In fact, given corporate food channels like Sysco, I would even question the expiration date as being accurate or fair to the life span.
Humans evolve, we also can use various senses to determine whether something is off or not.
Food can also go bad before the best before date and likewise, food that is past the "best before" date doesn't immediately become trash.
If we go by your logic, we probably should start calling you "Trash Stuart" instead of "Stuart" since that you're obviously past your "best before" already.
Just for reference, there is a...
Humans evolve, we also can use various senses to determine whether something is off or not.
Food can also go bad before the best before date and likewise, food that is past the "best before" date doesn't immediately become trash.
If we go by your logic, we probably should start calling you "Trash Stuart" instead of "Stuart" since that you're obviously past your "best before" already.
Just for reference, there is a reason for labels like "do not eat after" compared to "best before".
In Pharmaceutical industry, "best before" is the longest shelf life the company has chosen to test for. In other words, they make a drug and they ran tests to see if it's still fully effective after 6 months in the bottle, so they choose to say "Best Before" 6 months from manufacturing date. It might actually last 7 years, but the company didn't choose to tesst for that. I wonder why.
Food labelling is interesting....
In Pharmaceutical industry, "best before" is the longest shelf life the company has chosen to test for. In other words, they make a drug and they ran tests to see if it's still fully effective after 6 months in the bottle, so they choose to say "Best Before" 6 months from manufacturing date. It might actually last 7 years, but the company didn't choose to tesst for that. I wonder why.
Food labelling is interesting. I once wrote to Walkers Shortbread in Scotland because I'd bought a box with a "Best before" field on the carton, but nothing entered in it. they wrote with great courtesy that they make the packages for multiple markets and in my country (Canada) the product is defined as confectionery and therefore no expiry date is required.
The fact that we don't actually know what to make of this is kind of disappointing. If packages are going to have freshness guidance on them, shouldn't it be crystal clear what the message means? Why force them to put something on the package if it's ambiguous, misleading, and open to misinterpretation?
Best before dates have no relationship with food safety. It is a date applied by the manufacturer as to when they believe the product will retain maximum quality. The product can, and will be safe to consume for weeks, months and potentially years after this date. It may just not taste the same as the manufacturer intended.
If it was a use by date then that is a different story as this is applied based...
Best before dates have no relationship with food safety. It is a date applied by the manufacturer as to when they believe the product will retain maximum quality. The product can, and will be safe to consume for weeks, months and potentially years after this date. It may just not taste the same as the manufacturer intended.
If it was a use by date then that is a different story as this is applied based on product safety.
There may have been an issue with over ordering, significant number of cancelled flights, stock rotation failure etc. Unlikely that the company knowingly served them after the best before date as it is not a great guest experience. They would be replaced by the cabin crew if they had an alternative onboard and were made aware by the guest.
I wouldn’t eat it! I’d rather not tempt fate with possible food poisoning regardless of the meaning of “Best Before.”
“Best before” is not expired. It’s not the same as “ use by”.
Tipping at a restaurant is optional. It’s not the same as required. But if you don’t do it…
Then what?
Except some foods have Use by where it's required. And Best before is where it doesn't need to be used by. So quite different to your analogy.
I agree that this particular meal will be just fine for quite some time past its “best before” date. However, what’s almost certainly more dangerous about it, is the sodium level in all those salted meats and olives!
It would be interesting to know if this happens regularly. Maybe Eurowings works with a company which „saves“ expired food from supermarkets.
Why is toothpick listed as an ingredient? Is it edible?
Couldn’t be any worse than the other ingredients listed …
Fibre?
This is a "packaged snack" and not a proper meal platter. In Eurowings BizClass, guests have free choice of any buy-on-board item. Could be a sandwich or said Tapas platter, whatever guests choose.
Hi Peer, do you know that the choice is limited to exactly one item?
I read this in some reviews but did not find evidence on the Eurowings website.
"If you have booked our BIZclass tariff, you can choose your individual meal free of charge from our menu.1 For the sophisticated palate, our menu features a selection of quality products distinguished by their regional origin, preparation and unique ingredients."
Simple no! The menu is everything...
Hi Peer, do you know that the choice is limited to exactly one item?
I read this in some reviews but did not find evidence on the Eurowings website.
"If you have booked our BIZclass tariff, you can choose your individual meal free of charge from our menu.1 For the sophisticated palate, our menu features a selection of quality products distinguished by their regional origin, preparation and unique ingredients."
Simple no! The menu is everything but nothing for the sophisticated palate!!!
I got one sandwich, a bag of Haribo and one drink on my last flight.
I don't think you could get two "mains", but worth a try if you're hungry.
Wonder if there is a chance this meal could have been frozen as well.
Best Before is not an expiration date. An Expiration Date only applies to food that are extremely sensitive to nutritional value (think baby food, meal replacements and health supplements).
So what is it? A warning that under the best of circumstances you should eat this before the date shown or if kept under close observation and properly stored in precise conditions it might be ok?
No, it's just an indication that the food may not taste as nicely as it should, or have the perfect texture as intended by the manufacturer (organoleptic properties, as they're known). So it may be a subpar experience, but still safe to consume it beyond the "best before" date. If it was dangerous to eat it past a certain date, the correct phrasing would be "use by" or, quite simply, "expiry date".
More and more companies change this now to "best before but almost always just as fine after: DATE", including on dairy.
Just use your senses. Smell if it's off. This was a tapas selection.. with preserved stuff :D
Perhaps the EU has more consistent labeling but at least in the US “best before” is merely a suggestion, not an actual expiration. Most food dates are meaningless. Add in that it looks like it’s a cured meat and 11 extra days sounds like nothing.
Yep, the same in (at least most of) Europe. If something is supposed to be consumed by a given date and no later, the phrasing is "Use by" instead.
Processed meats? Heck, they'll outlive you, me or anyone else reading this. Just the thing to stash in your fallout shelter to get you through the next 100 years or so. Play on, Eurowings, play on...
I agree with previous post, best before does not mean lethal the day after I do not see an issue with this particular example at all
so how did the crew react?
A best before date is not actually expired, and can be consumed with caution (if it smells and tastes okay, it can be consumed no problem)
But realistically this should Obvious never happen in a premium cabin (or any cabin for that matter)