Southwest Pistachios Plan Raises Allergy Concerns

Southwest Airlines will add pistachios to its complimentary snack lineup for customers seated in its new extra-legroom section beginning January 27, 2026. The selection, Wonderful Pistachios No Shells in Roasted & Salted and Honey Roasted flavors, returns a nut to Southwest's onboard menu for the first time since peanuts were dropped in 2018. The announcement has triggered concern among travelers with nut allergies and advocacy groups, who argue the change could raise exposure risks to tree nut residue in tightly enclosed cabins.

Southwest framed the addition as part of a broader refresh of its premium experience, tying the snack to the rollout of extra-legroom seating and a wider suite of cabin and policy changes, including the shift to assigned seating. The airline's assigned-seating information page confirms the new seat categories and timing, with premium-seat benefits ramping up on flights departing on or after January 27, 2026.

Allergy advocates reacted quickly. Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) said it is "deeply concerned" about serving pistachios, a tree nut allergen, and urged mitigation steps such as ensuring epinephrine is present on every flight and allowing early boarding for cleaning. Public statements echoed that adding common allergens without clear safeguards could put passengers at risk, even if the nuts are restricted to one section of the cabin.

For travelers, the practical question is exposure. While airlines cannot guarantee allergen-free environments, surface residue and airborne dust are the main vectors inside a pressurized tube where close quarters and recirculated air can complicate avoidance strategies. Wiping down hard surfaces, alerting the crew, and carrying two epinephrine auto-injectors remain standard recommendations. The risk calculus may be higher near the rows where the nuts are served, but residue can travel as passengers move about the cabin, so precautions should extend beyond a single seating zone. (This guidance reflects common clinical and advocacy recommendations; specific medical advice should come from a clinician.)

The pistachio decision arrives amid Southwest's biggest product and policy overhaul in decades. In 2025, the carrier began pivoting from its hallmark open-seating model toward assigned seats, launched extra-legroom options, and introduced new baggage fee structures with carve-outs for elite members and select fares. Those changes, controversial among loyalists who prized the carrier's simplicity, are designed to drive revenue and compete more directly with legacy airlines that already segment cabins and ancillaries.

Financially, Southwest says the transformation is working. The airline reported record third-quarter 2025 operating revenue, citing progress on its "transformational initiatives," and guided to an all-time revenue record in fourth quarter 2025. That momentum provides context for why the carrier is pressing forward even as some customers bristle at the changes.

Southwest's premium rollout

According to Southwest's assigned-seating and benefit pages, A-List and A-List Preferred members gain expanded seat-selection privileges, including access to extra-legroom seats as benefits phase in. The pistachios are slated as an extra-legroom perk, aligning snacks and service tiers with the new seat map. As with other airlines, expect the exact snack availability to vary by flight length and catering station.

Background: How allergens spread on planes

Cabins are cleaned on tight turns, which may leave residue on tray tables, armrests, and seatbelts between flights. Air exchange and HEPA filtration reduce particulates but do not eliminate them. Mitigation on the passenger side typically includes pre-boarding to sanitize immediate surfaces, using seat-back call buttons early to flag allergies, and avoiding shared food service areas when possible. FARE's call for explicit policies, onboard epinephrine, and consistent crew procedures reflects long-standing gaps across carriers.

Final thoughts

The pistachio plan is a small amenity with outsized implications. For travelers with allergies, the near-term focus is on seat selection, early notifications, and self-carried epinephrine. For Southwest, the move signals a continued shift to a tiered product that mirrors the rest of the U.S. market, even at the cost of stirring debate among its most loyal customers.

Sources

• Southwest upsets fliers with allergies by bringing pistachios on board
• Pistachios on Planes? Southwest Sparks Allergy Safety Concerns
• Assigned Seating
• Southwest Airlines Reports Record Third Quarter Revenue
• Final boarding call for free bags at Southwest as airline abandons a cherished perk
• An inside look at Southwest Airlines' changes geared toward premium travel