dnata prepares festive meals for millions of global airline passengers

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dnata prepares festive meals for millions of global airline passengers

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Justin Russell Divisional Vice President – dnata Finance Business Partner | dnata

By Sky Industry News

Dec 10, 2024

dnata, a prominent provider of air and travel services, is set to prepare 18 million meals for airline partners globally this December. The initiative aims to enhance the culinary experience for passengers during the festive season.

The catering teams at dnata will start serving traditional roast turkey from mid-December. Passengers can expect a meal featuring sage and onion stuffing, roast potatoes, and Brussels sprouts. Some airlines will offer starters like prawn cocktail or mixed grain and cranberry salad. A total of 6.9 tonnes of meat will be used across these meals.

Dessert options vary by region. In the UK, travelers can enjoy mince pies, Christmas cake, and festive chocolates. Australian passengers have choices like warm fruit pudding or gingerbread-spiced mousse. In the USA, pumpkin pie with spiced mascarpone or cream is popular among American airlines.

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Robin Padgett, Divisional Senior Vice President for Catering and Retail at dnata, elaborated on the menu planning process: “An airline’s menus are planned out once per year... Festive menus are signed off in November.” He added that special meals make up 45% of total meals provided for major carriers.

dnata also offers tailored on-board retail services: “We’ll ensure that passengers of our retail customers also receive the festive experience,” said Robin.

To reduce waste, dnata uses predictive analytics to optimize food loading based on consumption patterns. This approach helps minimize waste and reduces fuel consumption by avoiding excess weight. Sourcing local ingredients is another strategy employed to lower food miles.

Robin concluded by expressing pride in their global clientele's trust: “We take great pride in the confidence our global clients have in us.”

In the first half of the financial year 2024-25, dnata produced over 50 million meals from more than 60 locations worldwide.