Nutty issue: Singapore Airlines stops serving peanuts

Singapore Airlines said today it has stopped serving peanuts on its flights after a toddler suffered a severe allergic reaction, and following near-fatal cases on other carriers.

The Singapore flag carrier joins other airlines including Qantas, Air New Zealand and British Airways who have stopped handing out peanuts as snacks to customers.

The airline said in a statement it had stopped serving peanuts in all cabin classes in April, although other nuts -- including cashews, macadamias and almonds -- would still be given out in some classes.

It did not give a reason for the move.

The carrier last year launched a review after a three-year-old boy on board a flight from Singapore to Melbourne with his parents went into anaphylaxis -- a severe, life-threatening allergic reaction -- after other passengers opened snack bags of peanuts.

The boy's father said he started vomiting, his eyes began to swell and he couldn't speak properly.

But the allergy was brought under control with medication the parents had brought with them.

There have been reports of other children suffering severe allergic reactions during flights with other airlines in recent times.

In March, a 10-year-old old boy suffered a near-fatal allergic reaction after consuming one cashew on board an American Airlines flight from Aruba to New York.