The inside of an in-flight meal bowl is densely covered in mold.
The food has completely rotted and is unrecognizable.
These are photos released by workers at an in-flight catering facility in the U.S., who claim that maggots, cockroaches, and mold were found in the meals.
According to U.S. CNN, workers at the catering company Flying Food Group, located in Inglewood near Los Angeles International Airport, recently filed a report regarding workplace hygiene and safety issues with the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health.
At issue was a catering cart used for in-flight meals at the end of last June.
Workers claimed that they were ordered to open a cart that had been left unopened for a long time and checked the inside, where they found spoiled food, mold, maggots, and flies.
The union stated that although workers suggested discarding the tableware, a superior ordered them to wash it for reuse on the next flight.
The workers claimed that they were exposed to mold and pests during this process, but were not provided with masks or proper protective equipment.
There was also testimony that pests resembling cockroaches were spotted in the food preparation area and around the in-flight meal carts.
Flying Food Group stated, "We are thoroughly reviewing the issues raised and cooperating with the investigations of relevant authorities."
Flying Food Group operates 19 facilities across the U.S. and supplies more than 120 million in-flight meals annually to over 75 airlines, and the facility in question prepares meals for airlines using Los Angeles International Airport.
This is not the first time in-flight meal hygiene issues have sparked controversy.
In July of last year, a Delta Air Lines flight turned back after mold was found in an in-flight meal, and in September of last year, a passenger on an Air India flight from Delhi, India to New York, U.S., reported finding a foreign substance resembling a cockroach in the omelet they were served.
Reported by Jung Da-eun | Video edited by Choi Gang-san | Design by Lee Sumin | Produced by SBS Digital News
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