LSG Sky Chefs makes sure everything fits within a fairly standard small galley, and uses innovative packaging that will fit into tight configurations.

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As the world’s largest in-flight services and airline catering company, LSG Sky Chefs creates more than 100 million meals for 270 airlines in 47 countries each day. “We have more than 60 years [of] delivering culinary and logistical expertise to our customers,” says Sondra Lehman, COO for North America.   

LSG Sky Chefs’ industry dominance took off after two well-established airline-catering companies merged – Sky Chefs Inc. and LSG Lufthansa Service GmbH. Sky Chefs was founded in 1942 as a catering subsidiary of American Airlines. Twenty-four years later, LSG Lufthansa was established as a subsidiary of Duetsche Lufthansa AG.

In 1989, LSG began the first portion of its global expansion strategy when it acquired shares in Sky Bird Services in Hong Kong, as well as in de Montis in Italy. In 1993, it acquired a 25 percent stake in Sky Chefs. In 2001, the merger was complete when LSG bought the remaining shares of Onex Food Services, Sky Chefs’ parent corporation after American Airlines. In the next decade, LSG Sky Chefs expanded operations in Europe, Asia, Africa and India. “We have 191 kitchens around the world,” Lehman says. “The sun never sets on our operations, and we never sit on our laurels.”

This year, LSG Sky Chefs expanded its frozen food and equipment logistics divisions into Asia and North America. Through a joint venture with China National Aviation/Air China Group, it expects to begin production in 2008 in Quingdao, Shandong Province, China.

The company recently announced plans to open a frozen food plant in Pittsburgh next year, as well, with capacity to produce approximately 11 million meals annually for its airline and retail customers.

It is also catering to a wider market. “Our retail business, which includes theme parks, convenience stores, grocery chains and major corporations, has helped stabilize our business and allowed our chefs to develop attractive food for consumers,” Lehman says. “The broader knowledge this provides in menu design for our core airline business has been fruitful.”

Not So Easy
Roxanne Conrad, director of corporate communications, says LSG Sky Chefs’ meal services range from “very elaborate multi-course meals for first class to simple snacks and beverages in coach. It depends on what the airline needs from us as to how in-depth our services go.   

“Part of this boils down to the airline’s choices and their style. We have some relationships that are complete partner relationships, where we handle all the processes of developing the meals and choose the equipment.”  

A company department is devoted to equipment design and culinary development, Conrad adds. “Their job is to come up with solutions for our airline and retail customers and to create the specifications that go out to the kitchen so that the menu items can be replicated with consistency and quality,” she says. “It has to be the same every time in every kitchen across the world.

“The other challenge is making sure everything fits within a fairly standard small galley or convenience and grocery store cases – that’s part of the meal design. Equipment design allows us to work with designers to come up with innovative packaging that will still fit into the configurations. It has to be light, as well, because you don’t want to add too much to the weight of the plane as it flies.”

Most importantly, she adds, is that the meals have to be produced in a safe and secure manner and meet HACCP requirements. “This is an industry standard that basically monitors the safety and quality of the food as it travels through the system and on to the plane,” she explains, adding that even hot meals have to be chilled down before they’re brought onto a plane and are later reheated using convection ovens.

“So, when you’re designing a meal, you have to design things that can be reheated in an attractive manner,” she notes.

‘Cautiously Optimistic’
The entire airline industry took a hit in 2001, when domestic business dropped 40 percent after 9/11, Lehman notes. “The airlines have had to adapt to a new business environment, and we’ve had to adapt alongside of them,” Conrad says. “Our goal is to be a partner with our airlines and not just a vendor. We work with our customers quite closely to make sure we’re on top of any emerging trends.”

Buy-on-board is one trend that several airlines have embraced to produce ancillary revenue. “Domestic catering had shrunk quite a bit, and you’re not going to find a lot of free meals in coach class within domestic flights under three hours,” Conrad states.

“We saw some indications of it in 2000, and, of course, 2001 greatly accelerated the process. If you’re looking at a business-class or first-class passenger, they typically will have some type of meal for free if the flight is over three hours.”

At the same time, Conrad points out that most airlines have experienced a stabilization. “As airlines are becoming more secure, we’re seeing more indications that [airline catering] is coming back,” Conrad says. “It hasn’t gone away in the international market, but within the domestic market we’re cautiously optimistic.”