While Santa will probably be the busiest person this Christmas, workers at dnata Catering can make a claim for following a close second – they will serve up an astonishing 18 million festive meals in December.
The traditional ‘roast turkey and trimmings’ favourite topped the list for airline partners around the globe, which – if piled on one very large plate – would account for almost seven million tonnes of meat alone.
While meals typically include favourites such as roast potatoes, sage stuffing and Brussels sprouts, carriers could opt for a variety of starters – prawn cocktails and grain and cranberry salad featured highly – along with a host of regional variations.
For example, while mince pies, Christmas cake and festive-themed chocolates were prepared for airlines jetting out of the UK, Australian passengers can opt for a choice of warm fruit pudding, Christmas pudding cheesecake, or gingerbread-spiced crumble topped mousse. In the U.S., pumpkin pie with spiced mascarpone or cream and pumpkin cheesecake and stewed apples offers an alternative twist.
Robin Padgett, Divisional Senior Vice President for Catering and Retail at dnata, explained: “An airline’s menus are planned out once per year and many airlines have cyclical menus to reflect the seasonal changes.
“Festive menus are signed off in November, after they have been developed by our award-winning chefs. Recipes are then created for all our global stations along with loading and plating guides with photographs of each stage, to ensure consistent delivery.”
Padgett added that, with halal-prepared meat and vegetarian alternatives included, special meals accounted for 45% of total meals provided its big airline partners.
The festive theme continued through dnata’s retail offering, with turkey, stuffing and cranberry sandwiches and mince pies available.
