Yeah, I'm sure he knows that - he lives in Andorra - but I read it as him being surprised that of all the tasty things they weren't allowed to eat (as the article makes clear the food during the Tour tends to be pretty bland) the first thing they'd crave is a salad.
I remember Fabio Aru saying that he was allowed to eat a pizza once in an year, at the end of the season.
This is one of the reason why several modern cyclist had a mental breakdown like Tom Dumolin
