Surge in Passenger Air Traffic & the Corresponding Demand for Quality, Fresh, and Delicious Food On-Board to Drive the In-Flight Catering Services Market
The
global market for In-Flight Catering Services is projected to exceed US$21
billion by 2024, driven by booming air travel and the corresponding
increase in passenger traffic, and enhanced focus on choice, quality and
consistency supported by innovation in bringing about the best quality meals
on-board.
The simple fare of biscuits, sandwiches, beef tea, mineral
water, whisky and beer served about nine decades ago by Imperial Airways, the
predecessor of British Airways, was the seed to the present huge business of
airline catering which serves elaborate high-end culinary offerings that are
customized to the passenger’s tastes. Increasing competition is driving
airlines to make the experience more memorable and also differentiate in terms
of total in-flight experience from competitors. In-flight catering services
market has also witnessed numerous changes over the years led by people’s
changing preferences for new variety of foods, particularly in view of the
growing health consciousness and increasing awareness about nutrition. While
traditionally the aviation sector benefited from business travels, rise in number
of air travelers on leisure/pleasure trips, international tourism, growth in
student travel under student exchange programs, global sports meets and growing
popularity of medical tourism, are also contributing to the significant
increase in air traffic and demand for airline catering. Fast paced urbanization
and resulting increase in migrant population is also driving increased
passenger traffic between major business centers and towns, representing the
primary growth driver for the inflight catering services market.
Future growth in the market will be driven by digital
platforms and interfaces offered to passengers by airlines, which leverage the
technology inputs and knowledge to manage inventories, create customer profiles
and data-based specific offers, and also streamline workflow and operations. Airlines
are making use of AI for determining the amount of food required by passengers.
By employing machine learning, airlines are optimizing the process of loading
planes and reducing wastage of food. Airborne Cooking Robot, an industry
4.0 in-flight oven’s multi-channel energy transmission technology ensures
that each course in the food racks receives customized treatment and food is
cooked with adjustable parameters, including time, temperature, etc. Growing
expectations of all class of passengers to have healthy and nutritious food; advent
of mobile and online meal order booking that is witnessing steady adoption by major
airlines, and surge in travel needs of the Chinese millennial population that
represent the largest and most important demography worldwide represent other
important growth drivers. Increasing demand by air passengers for environmentally
sustainable food solutions with locally sourced food products; shift from
complimentary meals to buy-on-board meals transforming in-flight catering from
a free service offering to a revenue model; and rising popularity of mini-meals
and nutritious snacks for the health-conscious airline traveler are additional
factors poised to benefit market prospects in the near term.
As stated by the new market research report on In-Flight
Catering Services, Asia-Pacific represents
the largest and the fastest growing market worldwide with a CAGR of 6.5% over
the analysis period. Rising number of high net worth individuals (HNWIs) as
well as expanding middle class income group with increased discretionary
spending; rapid urbanization; increasing international travel and tourism, and rising
standard of living to complement aspirational travelling are factors poised to
drive growth in the region. The Middle East is also emerging as a hub of
international airline activity with the regional airlines remaining top
performers in in-flight catering for the past few years. Emirates, with daily
production of more than 300,000 meals and 117 million meals per annum for 134
airlines and a high tech catering unit, provides provincial chefs for preparing
particular dishes for customers of different nationalities.
Key players in the market include Abby’s Catering, AAS Catering Co., Ltd., ANA Catering Service
Co., Ltd., Brahim’s SATS Food Services Sdn Bhd, Cathay Pacific Catering
Services (H.K.) Ltd., DO & CO Restaurants & Catering AG, dnata, Emirates
Flight Catering Co., LLC, Gate Gourmet, KLM Catering Services Schiphol BV, LSG
Lufthansa Service Holding AG, LSG Sky Chefs, Newrest Group International S.A.S,
Royal In-Flight Catering Co., Ltd., Saudi Airlines Catering Company, and SATS
Limited, among others.
The
research report titled “In-Flight
Catering Services - Market
Analysis, Trends, and Forecasts”
announced by Global
Industry Analysts Inc., provides a comprehensive
review of market trends, issues, drivers, mergers, acquisitions and other
strategic industry activities of global companies. The report provides market
estimates and projections for all major geographic markets including the United
States, Canada, Japan, Europe (France, Germany, Italy, the UK, Spain, Russia,
and Rest of Europe), Asia-Pacific (China, and Rest of Asia-Pacific), Middle
East, Africa, and Latin America.
Global Industry Analysts, Inc. 6150 Hellyer Ave., San
Jose CA 95138, USA, All Rights Reserved.
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