EasyJet to stop offering nuts on flights to help keep allergy sufferers safe

EasyJet is to stop offering nuts on flights and ban passengers from eating them on-board if a fellow traveller is allergic to them.

The airline told Sky News that anyone with an allergy should notify the company in advance so other passengers can be asked not to consume products containing nuts that they may have brought on-board.

Peanuts have already been pulled from all flights and the final item containing nuts is to be taken off the menu within the next few months.

A spokeswoman told Sky News: "The safety and welfare of all of our customers and crew is our highest priority, so we have a number of procedures in place to assist customers travelling with a nut allergy.

"It is not possible to ban nuts on all flights since passengers will still bring products on-board containing them, but when a passenger who suffers from a severe nut allergy which can result in anaphylaxis is travelling with us, we will request that other passengers travelling on the flight do not consume nuts that they have brought with them."

Passengers can make the airline aware of their allergy in advance when they book their flights.

The information will then be passed on to the cabin crew - and customers are advised to identify themselves to the staff upon boarding the plane.

EasyJet is not the first UK airline to introduce stricter nut policies, with British Airways among those who already ask passengers not to eat peanuts if someone else on-board has an allergy.

There are not yet any industry-wide rules regarding nut allergies, but an aviation charter that could introduce more widespread restrictions is under consultation.

Earlier this year, aviation minister Liz Sugg met with allergy sufferers, medical experts and airlines, and stressed the need for "improved clarity and consistency in how the sector deals with allergies".

The consultation on the charter, dubbed Aviation 2050, ends later this year.