ANA to offer environmentally friendly inflight meals

All Nippon Airways (ANA) will offer environmentally friendly inflight meal options for its first and business classes on select international routes featuring sustainable dishes and ingredients with less environmental impact.  In addition, as an effort to solve food loss issues, ANA will start using rice that have been out of circulation, which will be offered in ANA’s employee cafeterias. These actions align with the values of  ANA Future Promise, the airline’s initiative to promote sustainability and social good. 

“The sustainability of the society we live in is just as important as the health of our customers.”, said  Tomoji Ishii, Executive Vice President, Customer Experience Management & Planning of ANA. “With our  sustainable approach to in-flight meals, among other initiatives, we aim to make a difference in the world  and inspire others to do the same.” 

Kale focaccia offered as in-flight meal 

Since 2008, ANA Catering Service has recycled 100% of the food waste collected from in-flight meal  preparations into compost and animal feed, and from March 2022, soft kale grown with compost recycled  from in-flight meal preparation waste has been served as in-flight salad on economy class on select  international routes, completing the recycling system of cooking residues. 

Based on this recycling system, kale focaccia kneaded with soft kale paste in the dough will be available  on first and business class in-flight meals on select international routes departing from Japan from  September 1 through November 30, 2022. This focaccia is an ANA original, handmade one by one in house at the in-flight catering facility. 

Kale focaccia Soft kale

“Nobeoka bamboo shoots” offered as in-flight meal 

ANA will also begin offering a new Japanese dish using the “Nobeoka bamboo shoots” on first class on  select international routes departing from Japan starting September 1 through November 30, 2022. “Nobeoka bamboo shoots”, produced by LOCAL BAMBOO INC., are made from bamboo shoots grown  in Nobeoka, a city in Miyazaki prefecture Japan, and was developed to tackle the issue of abandoned bamboo groves, which has become a nationwide issue. In addition to its quality and taste, ANA supports  the sustainable approach to solving the issue. 

Nobeoka bamboo shoots 

Abandoned bamboo groves in Nobeoka

Utilizing rice out of circulation in the employee cafeteria 

ANA Group is enacting a variety of initiatives to reduce food loss, including controlling the number of in flight meals precisely through an advanced meal reservation service. 

Starting October 2022, ANA will adopt rice that has been out of circulation in the market in the employee  cafeteria at the ANA Group Training Center (ANA Blue Base) in cooperation with Food Loss bank, Inc.. This rice used by ANA has been out of circulation due to time since harvest and not due to quality issues. ANA hopes this will contribute to increased employee awareness for sustainability, by having each  employee involved in food loss reduction. 

ANA will continue to expand its food-related sustainability initiatives to contribute to solving environmental  

and social issues.