Conditions earlier this year at a food production facility operated by Flying Food Group at the Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) could have posed a food safety risk to international airline passengers who consumed meals prepared there. That’s according to a U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspector’s report from two unannounced January inspections made public this week by a LA-based union representing airline food workers. UNITE HERE reportedly got the inspection results through a Freedom of Information Act records request. At the time, the FDA inspector found temperature problems with prepared foods and machines used to sanitize equipment, dirty employee restrooms, and clutter in a storage area, which could possibly harbor pests without anyone noticing. However, the inspector added that there was no evidence of pests on the premises when the inspections took place. UNITE HERE said some Flying Food Group workers had reported seeing rodents and insects in an airline food production kitchen and had been ordered to change dates on food products. “Flying Food’s employees report practices that may pose potential health risks to themselves and the flying public alike,” the union stated. “Based on worker testimony and health inspection reports filed by the (FDA), Flying Food’s sanitation record raises concerns for an airline caterer serving high-end airlines at a world-class airport.” Flying Food Group responded by saying that the problems cited in the January FDA inspection had been fixed and that the report was part of the union’s effort to cause problems for its business. “This so-called report is just the latest example of labor union UNITE HERE making false allegations and exploiting our employees in a desperate attempt to disrupt our business and advance their union agenda,” the company said in a statement. “Ensuring the quality and safety of our food is of the utmost importance to us.” The company noted that its LAX food production facilities had scored 96 out of 100 in a surprise two-day inspection last month done by a third party hired by some of its airline clients. The union would like to organize the 550 Flying Food Group workers at LAX with the stated goal of increasing wages and improving working conditions. A class-action lawsuit was filed earlier this year by nine LAX workers against the company alleging wage and health insurance theft. Flying Food Group prepares meals for 70 airlines in about 20 production kitchens around the country, including these carriers with international flights scheduled out of LAX: British Airways, Air France, Japan Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Etihad Airways. The company has had several food safety-related problems in recent years. It recalled food prepared at its facility in Lawrenceville, GA, in July 2011 after tests confirmed the presence of Listeria monocytogenes. There was another recall in December 2011 involving the same facility. In January 2012, FDA sent the company a warning letter noting that seafood HACCP-related problems were observed during 2011 inspections at its airline catering facility in Newark, NJ. The agency sent another letter to Flying Food Group in July 2013 stating that the problems at the Newark facility appeared to have been fixed. In 2014, Flying Food Group recalled 41 appetizer meals prepared for a British Airways flight from Miami because of possible Listeria contamination.