A woman named Madi posted a TikTok video of herself holding a gold-wrapped Whittaker’s Peanut Slab while speaking to the camera inside an airplane cabin. On-screen text read “Peanuts on a plane.” She said she is a Kiwi and stated, “I’m a Kiwi, it’s my birthright.” She explained she was eating the New Zealand-made chocolate in peace when a lady behind her in the tunnel made a comment.
Madi repeated the passenger’s words: “Thank God I’m not anaphylactic.” She then said she could not even be out in the wild eating a peanut slab. She added, “Yes, I can. And yes, I will,” before taking a bite of the chocolate bar. The TikTok video gained 3.7 million views and more than 9,500 comments.
In the caption for that video, Madi wrote that the birthright comment referred to being a New Zealander and eating her favorite New Zealand-made chocolate. She said it was not a commentary on human rights. She noted the lady who spoke did not have allergies and made the passive-aggressive remark before they boarded the plane. Madi said the woman was not seated next to her and that she was not aware of anyone nearby with a severe peanut allergy.
Madi posts follow-up videos to address reactions and peanut rules on flights
Madi released a second TikTok video to respond to the comments. She said she is not against getting something wrong and needing to say sorry or take down a video. She described stepping through the peanut situation. She explained that the lady approached her unsolicited and made passive-aggressive comments while stating she was not anaphylactic and not allergic to peanuts.
Madi said that at the time, she had not been thinking about allergies. The airline had made an announcement, and she was not aware of a peanut ban on airplanes. She stated that if she knew she was traveling with someone who had any allergy, or if someone was going to sit next to her, she would show appropriate care and consideration.
She addressed comments about airborne allergies. Madi said she did some light research and shared a screenshot from allergyfacts.org.au. The page asked whether people with food allergies can react to food particles in the air of the plane cabin. She said her reading suggested the biggest risk with peanuts is not airborne transfer but contact. She gave the example of dropping peanuts on a tray table so that the next passenger comes into physical contact with them.
Scientific evidence seem to support this view. A 2024 review of the latest research, commissioned by the UK Civil Aviation Authority and published in the BMJ journal Archives of Disease in Childhood, found that asking passengers not to eat nuts is unlikely to prevent an allergic reaction mid-flight. There is no evidence per that site that nut allergens are spread around the cabin by ventilation systems. Air circulates across the cabin rather than through it, and efficient filtering systems remove the vast majority of particles. Cabin air is completely exchanged every three to four minutes.
According to the BBC, previous studies show peanuts can be detected in the air only at very low levels and very close to the nuts themselves. The vast majority of people with food allergies may not react to the smell of food. The real risk, according to the review led by allergy expert Prof Paul Turner of Imperial College London, comes from residual peanut particles left on seats, tray tables, floors and entertainment screens by previous passengers. These can be transferred from hands to the mouth or face.
The experts advise that when turnaround times are short and thorough cleaning is limited, passengers with food allergies should be allowed to board first so they can wipe down their own seat area with a wet wipe or antibacterial wipe. This is considered far more effective than blanket nut bans, which may give a false sense of security.
Madi said she imagined airlines would notify people and carry out appropriate cleaning. She questioned whether claims about airborne allergies hold scientific backing. She explained that she had simply made a video about enjoying her favorite New Zealand chocolate and about a lady being rude and passive-aggressive.
She said she did not film the woman or enter into an argument. She added that she just enjoyed her chocolate on the plane. Food allergies can lead to tense encounters, as when a woman found a nutty item in a pack of Sam’s Club chocolate chip cookies.
She also said she was sorry if the video had offended anyone. Madi noted it was nice to see support from people with peanut allergies who understood her position. She said she would think twice about it, but did not feel she had been malicious or unempathetic toward anyone she knew had an allergy around her. Concerns about food allergies can lead people to seek their own answers, as when a woman decided to test if she actually has a nut allergy by eating an almond bar.
In a third video on TikTok, Madi replied to a comment that said airlines serve peanuts. The caption read that after the last few days, she did not order any of those snacks on her flight home. The video showed an airplane snack cart stocked with bags of Tong Garden Salted Peanuts and other items. It then cuts to Madi pulling her shirt collar over her nose and mouth while looking at the camera with wide eyes. The video returned to a close-up of the peanut bags on the cart.
Viewers left a range of comments under the videos. One person wrote, “My husband would legit die because of this. You couldn’t eaten it before or after the plane.” Another said, “This is incredibly rude. My mom goes into anaphylactic shock just by SMELLING peanuts. You literally could’ve killed someone.” A further comment stated, “That’s really selfish and dangerous.” Someone else wrote, “You’re not supposed to eat peanuts on a plane, it’s known on every plane.”
Other comments took a different view. One person said, “Peanut allergies are NOT airborne. You can literally google it people.” Another wrote, “this generation is so soft. we never have peanut allergies before in our younger days.” A further comment asked, “Don’t they literally serve peanuts on airplanes.”
One person stated, “Got allergies? Wear a f–kng mask! I’m not going to deprive myself my comfort snack of any sort whether it be nuts, chocolate, sweet tea, nerd clusters, whatever.” A comment overlaid on the third video read, “These comments are so weird. They f–king serve peanuts on airplanes.”
Published: Aug 20, 2026 10:37 am