I would love to hear any tips on what to eat during these for simplicity and practicality... in the good olde days it was so simple - a couple of flasks of smoothies and you're good to go.... now of course it's all changed... :-/

I find that I prefer to eat fresh, raw, whole, vegan foods wherever I go and whenever I eat. Sometimes I rely on local sources and sometimes I bring my own, especially if I'm not sure about local sources. It sounds like you travel farther then I do. Local for me is usually my neighborhood and/or town but no matter the boy scout motto still applies -- "be prepared".

lisa,

If there's food service with the airline you're using, call them ahead to see if they have any fresh raw vegetables or fruits available. Be specific that it cannot be anything from a can, and order a double or triple meal of these veggies or fruits if you feel satisfied with the answer you get. Otherwise, fill a clear zip-top baggie with a small amount of dry raw green-drink powder or raw hemp shake and stow it in your carryon. There's nothing on the TSA webpage of prohibited items about food powders,[www.tsa.gov], but notify the airline of this in advance to obviate confusion. Mix the powder with bottled water once your flight's underway. This is the best I can come up with. Good luck!

I alwyas bring some raw fruit with me whenever I fly, such as apples and bananas. I just stash them in my carry-on and they go through security with me. Nobody has ever given me a problem about my fruits.

Right. I've never had a problem bringing a bag of assorted whole fruit and/or nuts onto a plane flight. This should hold you over till you get to where you are going. Alternately, this is a good time for a short and relaxing fast. Just 2 options.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

I haven't traveled raw yet, but I've traveled vegan, and long flights can be tricky. I called the TSA once and got the lowdown. Basically no to all liquids--everybody already knows that, so the idea of the hemp or green powders to mix with bottled water later on is a good one.

Now you CAN bring along something like a nut butter--just put it in one of the little travelers bottles or jars (3.4 oz or smaller).

Flax crackers are fine--great with the nut butter. Pack your own salad and bring a dressing in one of those small traveler's bottles. Fruits and veggies sticks are great. Raw granola or trail mix work too. Its stuff like gels or mayo (texture-wise I'm talking about here) that are tricky--but if they are in one of those toiletry travel containers, they should be fine. Whenever I've flown to Hawaii or Europe I've always brought veggies sticks, cookies, trail mix, and vegan sandwich with me (again, this is pre-raw), so stuff like that is fine. Just NO soup, large nut bugger jars, smoothies, etc.

This is from the TSA website:
"3-1-1 for carry-ons = 3.4 ounce bottle or less (by volume) ; 1 quart-sized, clear, plastic, zip-top bag; 1 bag per passenger placed in screening bin. One-quart bag per person limits the total liquid volume each traveler can bring. 3.4 oz. container size is a security measure."

And more:
"Traveling with Food or Gifts:When it comes to bringing items through checkpoints, we've seen just about everything. Traveling with food or gifts is an even bigger challenge. Everyone has favorite foods from home that they want to bring to holiday dinners, or items from their destination that they want to bring back home.

Not sure about what you can and can't bring through the checkpoint? Here's a list of liquid, aerosol and gel items that you should put in your checked bag, ship ahead, or leave at home.

Cranberry sauce
Cologne
Creamy dips and spreads
(cheeses, peanut butter, etc.)
Gift baskets with food items
(salsa, jams and salad dressings)
Gravy
Jams
Jellies
Lotions
Maple syrup
Oils and vinegars
Perfume
Salad dressing
Salsa
Sauces
Snowglobes
Soups
Wine, liquor and beer"


All of the above are for sizes OVER the 3.4 oz rule, like bringing a 20 oz jar of homemade cranberry sauce for grandma on board. Hair gel, if brought in a 3.4 oz jar, is fine. And salad dressing or nut butter is too. Just pack that sort of stuff like its shampoo (i.e. your carry-on 3-1-1 toiletries) and it should pass right though. I've never had a problem.

Hope this helps!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/16/2009 06:47PM by Morganlefey.

From Hawaii, whole fruits are strictly prohibited on flights to the mainland US. But if I peel an orange and put the sections into a hard plastic container with a lid, along with slices of banana and others fruits, they always let that through. Last August, I went through with a fairly large container.

You can check online for the current rules:

[www.tsa.gov]

Dried fruits and nuts/seeds go through, but flying dehydrates, so it's good to drink lots of water, whatever else you bring. I try to bring at least a couple of those little water bottles whenever I fly, and sometimes ask for a cup and a slice of lemon.

Do you guys/gals just not worry about the food being x-rayed?

I actually work for TSA and you can bring any amount of fruits/veggies/nuts that you can pack. The x-ray shouldn't alter them at all. It may be of some concern if they go through very repeatedly, but once or twice through the x-ray is fine. It's really not at all as damaging as some people believe. The only thing that you have to be aware of is liquids or gels...things like that. So, as someone mentioned, no nut butters or juices/smoothies in quantities greater than 3.4 oz. Powders are fine. Other than that, stock up and enjoy!

Katra--someone REALLY in the know! Thanks for posting. And its good to know that we can bring any amount of fresh fruits and veggies through. I'm assuming its a little different from HI to the mainland, but its still great news!

Omega Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Do you guys/gals just not worry about the food
> being x-rayed?

Hi Omega. Good point!

To me, the whole experience of getting onto a plane, hurtling through the atmosphere, and breathing all that recycled "air" is already so strange anyway. The x-rayed food kind of goes along with the rest of it.

But it's definitely something to consider!

Hi suncloud,

I think you make a good point too.

According to the health and medical physicist quoted in the following article, every 4 hours of flying is equivalent to one chest x-ray of radiation:

[www.gwenmoran.com]

Yes, so a long-haul flight is like getting a full-body CT Scan--hooray!

Please, lisa, don't think about this and have a great flight there and back : )

Great -- I'm flying across the country this weekend and do several times a year. I didn't think about the radiation I am exposed to in general on the plane. I know that we generally get exposed to more radiation now than ever, but Hmmm. As far as eating, I bring fruits and veggies (avos are good and filling), and eat a salad at a restaurant on a layover if I need to.

I flew from San Francisco to Bangkok Thailand, and I brought a lot of citrus: navel oranges and tangerines. Also some romaine hearts. I did just fine on this long flight.

thanks so much everyone, so much great advice!

EZ/Nywyn/David/Suncloud/Katra - yeah, fresh fruits etc would be great, I find apples travel the best (bananas always get a bit mushy lol) although the tricky thing for me is that my long-haul flight is preceded by a shorter connecting one, which rules out fresh food (not allowed usually to bring it into another country)... so I guess I'm left with dried fruit and nuts, and whatever I can get hold of in the connecting airport, if I have time in between flights.

Tamukha - thanks for the link, very useful I've tried previously to order a raw vegan meal on a plane, but the best they could offer was a cooked vegan one. As for dried powders, it would be a great addition, however I might not chance taking them in case they cause any confusion... security staff aren't usually too familiar with dehydrated algae ha ha...don't want to miss my connection while being strip searched lol!!

Morganlefey (great name! have you read the Mists of Avalon trilogy?) thanks for all the info from the TSA

Omega/Suncloud/Sundancer - yikes, that is a worry! I have to do so much flying... I especially hate the transatlantic ones where they now come down the plane spraying all kinds of nasty stuff on us... last time I got a really bad chest infection after it... oh well, at least I'm not an air stewardess :-O

Bryan - I'm flying to San Fran Do you recall any smoothie bars in that airport? I really should start compiling a data base on rawfood facilities in airports

xxx

Here's a list of dining facilities at that airport: [www.flysfo.com]

I remember going to a Jamba Juice there years ago, but I don't see it on that list.



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 03/17/2009 05:53PM by Omega.

excellent, thanks Omega!

it's sad, but juice bars do seem to have a short life... they're just not as profitable as processed drink places.... I was queuing up at one of my regular haunts once, not really paying much attention, then I looked up to find it was now 'Mandy Moo's milkshake bar'... they were putting sweets and stuff in the drinks! And the queue was huge :-/