The reason airline food is bland and bad-tasting may not be what you think about the quality of the food. It may be background noise levels.
That affects people’s perception of a food’s taste and crunchiness, according to a new study at the University of Manchester published online in the Food Quality and Preference Journal.
"I’m sure airlines do their best—and given that, we wondered if there are other reasons why the food would not be so good. One thought was perhaps the background noise has some impact,” gesearcher Andy Woods told the BBC.
Participants in the study ate the food either in silence or while listening to quiet or loud white noise via headphones.
“While there were more noise, fewer participants could perceive sweetness and saltiness, the study reported. However, perception of crunchiness increased as background noise got louder,” reported the Epoch Times.
"NASA gives their space explorers very strong-tasting foods, because for some reason they can’t taste food that strongly — again, perhaps it’s the background noise," Woods said.
By David Wilkening
