Many of us must have taken a long-haul flight a few times and also enjoyed the meals served onboard. But seldom do our thoughts go beyond this experience to the actual scene of preparation and the effort and care taken to maintain the stringent hygiene standards and practices set in place while constantly coming up with inspiring meals for a fine dining experience in the sky. My visit to one such 24/7 facility turns out to be an eyeopener. Here’s what goes on behind the scenes.

The setting

The Abu Dhabi In-flight Catering Company (ADIFC), a subsidiary company of Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) has been recognised for its high quality services and has been expanding rapidly over the past few years as a result of the exponential growth of the company’s key partner Etihad Airways along with an increasing number of airlines operating from Abu Dhabi International Airport. Currently, the company produces an average of 38,000 meals per day catering to over 3,500 flights a month. “When I joined ADIFC in 2001, the facility was producing 6000 meals per day. We now produce 38,000 meals daily, serving about 36 flights during morning peak times alone. Production rates reach an all-time high during special events hosted by Abu Dhabi such as the Formula One Grand Prix, when the facility produces 45,000 meals in a single day,” says ADIFC’s Clean and Sanitation Controller, Ranji Koshy, who takes me on a tour of the facility. Before we start, he hands over ‘protective gear’ – a disposable cap, to cover my head. As I put in on, he hands me another – this one covers the head and face, except for the eyes. He then gives me a doctor’s coat and looking at my feet asks one of his staff to get a pair of shoes for me. “Everyone who enters the production unit has to follow strict procedures,” he comments.

The Production unit – where it all happens

One can imagine the amount of raw materials that have to be handled; the cooking equipment, trays and utensils to be cleaned round the clock; and the maintenance efforts in all areas of the unit to produce 38,000 meals a day, every single day of the year. The cleaning and hygiene aspects are central to the functioning of the production unit and are integrated into each and every step of the process, right from receiving the raw materials to the cooking area and the final packaging, and delivery at the aircraft. Stringent measures are adopted and everything happens in a temperature controlled setting. We move to the receiving bay, where the raw materials including vegetables, grains, and all other provisions are offloaded, weighed and forwarded to their respective storage areas. The dry items go directly to the dry store. Other items like vegetables are taken to the unit. At the entrance to the production area, we stop to wash, sanitise and dry our hands, a procedure to be followed by every individual entering the unit.

Distinct divisions

There are distinct areas of operation – one is the food production area, which is the most sensitive part. The other is the dishwashing area, including the airlines dishwashing area. The unit is clearly divided into the ‘clean’ and the ‘unclean or soiled’ areas with specific entrances to each one. The prewash area staff cannot enter the clean area. Overall, the divisions are aircraft catering unit, hot kitchen, cold kitchen, bakery unit, ADAC canteen, staff canteen, unclean vegetables area, pot wash area, garbage room, special works, Sky City

Pre-wash and cleaning area (vegetables)

The vegetables arrive at the unclean area and are stored in a holding chiller in yellow baskets and are thoroughly cleaned and sanitised before use. First, they are cleaned with water in the pre-wash area and soaked in a sanitisation solution. After a specified time, they are put through a final rinse in an adjacent tank with clean chilled water and stored in brown baskets (also sanitised) in another chiller room that can be accessed from the clean area for cooking..

Pot wash area

We enter the main pot wash area which has four entrances to the clean and soiled side of the unit. Two modern dish washing machines have been installed in the hall – one for the baskets and the other for the cooking equipment. All the used equipment is pre-washed here. If it is very dirty, it is soaked in a tank (with a heating element) with the required dosage of chemical and hot water for half an hour to remove the grease and oil and then cleaned with a scouring pad and loaded into the machine for the final wash. The equipment passes through three tanks in the dishwasher – the pre-wash followed by cleaning at a high temperature, and then the final rinse before being removed and stored. After each shift a thermo check is done to ensure the required temperature is maintained (at 71+) and functions efficiently.

Due to costs and responsible waste management, the airlines rotate equipment rather than dispose of items including glasses and cutlery. A dedicated section mainly deals with Etihad’s equipments that are offloaded from the aircraft. The items are segregated, washed, dried and stored in a suitable manner.

Vegetable cutting division (clean side)

We enter the clean area where the chopping and cutting is done in a separate room. At various points there is a solution to sanitise the knives, blades and other equipment. After each task is over they are cleaned in the equipment wash sink and placed in the sanitisation solution. The chopping machine is also cleaned after every single use. In addition, there is a ready-to-use spray for sanitisation. The cut vegetables are packed and placed in a chiller with access from the kitchen. On one side of the hall, there is a small meat cutting section as the main butchery unit is in Al Ain where the meat is processed and transported to this wing. The main unit of chillers and deep freezers is in Sky City. All the items that come from Al Ain and Sky City are time and date coded and stored here. The stickers are prepared by the Quality Controllers and kept right outside the room for use, so there is no chance of a mix-up. Even before we move further, the tantalizing aroma tells me we are next to the bakery division. All types of bread and related items are prepared in-house. After each shift the tables, floor and equipment are meticulously cleaned.

 Hot kitchen and blast chillers

The food which is cooked in the hot kitchen at temperatures of above 71 degrees centigrade is served on trays and straight away placed in the blast chillers to bring the temperature down to -5 in order to avoid bacterial growth. Currently the facility has 10 blaster chillers.Koshy explains, “The danger zone for bacterial growth is 5-63 degrees. When the food is cooked at 71+ it is brought down to a safe level. Within a specific time period it has to be cooled down, failing in which there are chances that the bacteria will multiply. The food is placed in trays in small portions to enable proper air circulation.” Following this, the food is placed in trolleys or baskets, covered with plastic sheets to avoid air pollution and stored in the holding chillers where the temperature level is retained until they are taken out for packing.

Cold kitchen

In the cold kitchen the sweets, sandwiches, salads, cheese, etc are prepared for various customers. “We have well trained chefs who can cook as per individual airline specifications,” he says.

Packaging

This is a very busy section and the staff is totally engrossed in packing the food for various airlines and sectors, bringing in each item from the chiller as and when required and meticulously and stylishly packing them according to the airline’s requirements. It is then transported through conveyor belts to the loading area. The Gulf sector food packaging is done on one side of the room and the International sector with elaborate meals is handled on the other. They are set on trolleys and placed in a chiller room until they are transported to the airplanes. From this point on it is the airside, which is secured and policed. The trolleys pass through the security check area where the food is scanned and sealed by the police and transported on high-loaders to the aircraft. Once the loading trucks return to the allotted area in the facility, they are thoroughly cleaned and sanitised.

Colour Coding

Each and every item in the unit is colour coded so there is no margin for error. The vegetables are first stored in yellow baskets, and after cleaning and sanitisation stored in brown baskets. The cutting boards are also colour coded

Supplier and in-house staff training

All new staff members are trained in-house and those already working receive continuous guidance which helps refresh their knowledge and skills. The chemicals and equipment supplier also holds training sessions related to

their services.

Assessments and audits

There is a daily auditing system in-house. The HSEQ department staff including the C&S Controller conducts at least one audit per division and provides feedback to concerned departments regarding sanitising solutions, kitchen equipment, daily deep cleaning of the cooking equipment and trolley hygiene, among others. Etihad Airways audit: For the airlines, Hygiene is the highest weighted score when selecting a catering partner and their specifications are very clear starting from the preparation of the meals to packaging and delivery to the aircraft. Etihad Airways and ADAC In-flight Catering do a combined audit of ADIFC every month and provide relevant feedback in the form of a monthly performance report.

 

 Medina Quality Assurance Services audit:

ADIFC has performed extremely well, receiving near perfect scores in audits conducted by external agencies. Assessment categories include: Food Quality, Food Safety, and General Operational Standards including hygiene,

timeliness of food delivery to the aircraft, equipment inventory control and accuracy of onboard packing. The unit has passed the audits conducted by Medina Quality Assurance Services with flying colours, says Koshy. “We scored 98% on hygiene. They are the toughest auditors related to the airlines and have certified this as one of the best units,” he proudly states.

Waste management and recycling

Responsible waste management is part of the strategy and ADIFC has installed two waste compactors. At present their recycling efforts include cardboard boxes, plastic bottles, certain types of aluminium cans, grease and oil waste, which are collected by a local recycling company. Once the expansion is complete, they plan to start further segregation of waste. “We are planning to expand the recycling efforts to the plastic bags (used for trolley coverings, food packaging, vacuum bags, etc). It is the next project from the hygiene department,” Koshy explains.

Expansion

To accommodate the current and projected growth, ADIFC is undergoing an expansion, with the new facility set to open early February. The extended facility will accommodate the fast growing needs of dry storage, cold storage space, loading bays, dishwashing capacity, food preparation and cold kitchen areas, and other related facilities.