More responsible catering

Since 2019

MORE RESPONSIBLE CATERING

Meals are an essential part of the Air France travel experience. The company offers its customers a more responsible offer, focusing on three priorities – responsible catering and reducing food waste, eliminating single-use plastic and recycling packaging.

MORE RESPONSIBLE CATERING AND FAIR CONSUMPTION

Catering

On all its flights and in its lounges on departure from Paris, Air France offers among others 100% French meat, poultry, dairy products, eggs, bread and pastries, as well as fish from sustainable fisheries. On flights to Paris, local and seasonal products are chosen wherever possible.

Reducing waste

We limit waste by implementing a rigorous stock management policy. Customers travelling in our long-haul Business cabin can also pre-select their dishes before their flight, therefore guaranteeing the availability of their choice. This means we only board the meals we know will be consumed and reduces on-board weight, therefore also reducing our fuel consumption. In 2023, this service should enable us to avoid boarding more than 52,000 hot meals.

When certain foodstuffs or items can no longer be used on board, they are donated to charitable organizations.

ELIMINATING SINGLE-USE PLASTIC

Plastic takes centuries to degrade and every year more than 10 million tons of plastic end up in the world’s oceans because they are not recycled. Air France is rapidly replacing plastic items with bio-sourced materials, both on board and on the ground, and will have eliminated/replaced 90% of single-use plastic items on board between 2018 and 2023 (cups, cutlery, trays, etc.). This represents 316 million items processed and 2,233 tons of plastic avoided. In line with French regulations, water fountains are installed in its lounges in France, resulting in an annual saving of 3.5 million individual plastic bottles.

RECYCLING PACKAGING

Since 2019, on all our flights to Paris, we have been sorting packaging so that it can be recycled in France or in Europe.

In 2022, 20 tons of plastic bottles, cartons and cans were recycled as well as 530 tons of glass bottles.

We are currently working on extending this selective sorting on board flights to our international stations.

SINCE 2019

2019
Elimination of 210 million single-use plastic items

2022 
Introduction of more responsible catering (local, balanced, labelled products, etc.) and widespread pre-selection of the hot dish in the long-haul Business cabin

2023 
90% of single-use plastic eliminated/replaced on board (i.e. 316 million items processed). Use of bio-based or recycled materials for travel accessories