Getting to the root of the problem in Taiwan

Kids who don't want to eat their vegetables may find some friends among Taiwan's airlines. According to news reports, the carriers are removing potatoes, carrots and other root vegetables from their in-flight vegetarian menus to comply with International Air Transport Association regulations.

The change is to follow Indian vegetarian rules, which according to the IATA mean that vegetables that grow under the soil and never see daylight are not allowed. Now, I am not sure where the IATA got its information, but I have eaten many Indian vegetarian meals and they sure have included plenty of root vegetables.

Unsurprisingly, the measure is likely to provoke complaints from Taiwanese vegetarian passengers already riled by the limited choice of in-flight food, says the Chinese-language Liberty Times. This is because meals on the airlines will no longer be able to use local favourites like sweet potatoes, carrots, potatoes and even ginger - a staple of Taiwanese dishes.

Caterers quoted by the news reports say that vegetarian food is a growing market for airline meals. An estimated 33% of Taiwanese citizens regularly come in touch with vegetarian cuisine, and 10% of Taiwanese airline passengers will order specially tailored meals, with Asian-style vegetarian meals the vast majority.

If this is the Taiwanese airline version of a food fight, I am backing the passengers to win this round.