Delta Air Lines is expanding its catering partnership with French company Newrest. The airline’s flights out of select destinations in Latin America, Africa, and Europe will receive catering from Newrest this year. This is in addition to the Newrest catering provided in points in the United States.
Delta and Newrest expand partnership
From the second quarter of 2021, the French company Newrest will be providing Delta Air Lines with catering solutions in seven additional airports:
Johannesburg, South Africa (JNB)
Madrid, Spain (MAD)
Barcelona, Spain (BCN)
Santiago, Chile (SCL)
São Paulo, Brazil (GRU)
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (GIG)
Cancun, Mexico (CUN)
Overall, Delta will work with Newrest at 16 airports worldwide.
Newrest and Delta
Delta and Newrest currently work together in the United States at two major Delta stations: Salt Lake City (SLC) and Raleigh-Durham (RDU). Newrest currently employs 225 people in SLC and 50 in RDU.
SLC is one of Delta’s core hubs. The airline currently operates about 200 daily flights at SLC, which is what Newrest provides catering for. Out of RDU, that number is 50 flights per day. After years of growth, the current crisis has pushed Delta to significantly reduce its flight schedule, which means Newrest is providing fewer meals.
Delta has focused on becoming a greener airline, and Newrest has also committed to being a more sustainable company. The catering company recycles as much as possible– including plastics, aluminum, and cardboard. In addition, Newrest is cutting down on overproduction to reduce food waste.
Newrest’s other partnerships
Newrest is a known and renowned catering company. Many leading airlines, including Emirates, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, and Air France-KLM, work with the company.
For Emirates, Newrest provides catering out of Belgium, France, Ghana, Greece, Nigeria, South Africa, Spain, and Zambia. With Virgin Atlantic, Newrest very recently began working with the airline out of Cape Town.
Is Delta bringing back inflight catering?
Newrest’s press release outlining the new partnership with Delta stated the following:
「As on-board food and beverage and demand returns next year, Newrest will offer Delta and their passengers innovative, high-quality catering products and services in Johannesburg, South Africa; Barcelona and Madrid, Spain; Santiago, Chile; São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and Cancun, Mexico.」
Out of long-haul international destinations, Delta has been serving hot meals. On shorter international flights and domestic flights, the airline is only offering snack boxes with limited beverage offerings.
Newrest cannot unilaterally decide to return a comprehensive onboard meal service to Delta’s flights. However, it has likely worked with Delta to figure out the plan moving forward as to how to cater Delta’s flights.
2021 could be the year when Delta brings back more inflight meal service. However, this is no guarantee as Delta has consistently stated it will be following guidance from public health officials, including its partners at the Mayo Clinic. Delta may also consider costs, given how meals can be expensive, and Delta is gearing up for another difficult year.
For now, Delta is gearing up to offer a better inflight catering service once full meals return with new DO & CO and Newrest partnerships.