The Big Tuna Sandwich Mystery

My first frozen tuna shipment, which cost upward of $150, was lost in transit. But on second try, the sample arrived intact. In two to three weeks, the lab would tell me whether it contained any tuna.

Sandwich Artists Weigh In

Though Subway declined to disclose its tuna suppliers, Sage, who has been a Subway manager in California for three years, shared some details about how the product arrives at her location. (Sage asked not to use her full name out of fear of reprisal from her employer.)

“The tuna comes in a case and inside the case, there are six aluminum pouches and it’s just like a pressed, vacuum sealed slab of tuna,” Sage said. “It’s flaky and it’s clearly soaked in water — it’s like a brine, so it’s just soaked in salt water — and it’s just flaky tuna. We just spread it apart with our hands” — gloved, of course — “and mix it with mayo.”

Sage said that each store follows corporate guidelines, which instruct that certain meats can stay out in the store’s refrigerated sandwich bar for up to 24, 48 or 72 hours.

Tuna, she said, has a 72-hour counter life (the time frame was also confirmed by Subway’s spokeswoman), though Sage said her store often replaces it before it hits three days. “We all agree — all of us that work there — it gets kind of gross,” she said.

Jen, a former Subway “sandwich artist” who worked at a location in Iowa for a year, said she couldn’t imagine what incentive Subway would have to replace the tuna with anything else. (Jen also asked not to use her full name out of fear of reprisal from her employer).

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/06/19/style/subway-tuna-sandwich-lawsuit.html