Emirates Meets Increasing Demand for Vegan Meals

As part of World Vegan Day, Emirates responded strongly to growing demand for plant-based meals by investing multimillion-dollars in new vegan options. While a meticulously prepared menu of gourmet vegan meals is offered in First and Business Class, the plant-based food options in Economy Class menus have been renewed.

In response to the rapid growth in the worldwide vegan community and the general interest in plant-based nutrition, Emirates is setting new standards in the passenger experience by offering delicious and healthy options for passengers with a vegan lifestyle or those who prefer lighter meals when traveling. Vegan options can be requested prior to flight as well as at Emirates Lounges.

Increasing Demand for Vegan Meals

Emirates has been offering vegan options on its flights since the 1990s. Originally, vegan meals were focused on specific routes, such as Addis Ababa, where Ethiopian Orthodox Christian communities are in demand at certain times of the year, or the Indian Subcontinent, where multiple beliefs promote a plant-based diet. As vegan food today is rapidly gaining general popularity on US, Australian, some European and UK routes, Emirates says there has been a huge increase in interest in vegan food over the past decade. Beirut, Cairo and Taiwan are among the routes where the interest in vegan food has increased rapidly recently. Emirates currently offers more than 180 plant-based recipes for vegan travelers.

Menu Development

Consistently voted the best airline for vegan passengers on many dedicated online survey sites such as VegNews, Emirates has invested in developing a new vegan menu that will compete with acclaimed restaurants. The vegan menu, available in First and Business Class, took a year to develop. The menu was developed within Emirates Flight Catering, a comprehensive facility at Dubai International Airport that serves nearly 11 meals a day with its 225 employees. Emirates Flight Catering is the largest in-flight catering services facility in the world, home to international chefs from 69 different nationalities. The menu focused on multiple presentations and tastings, with contributions from experts from a wide variety of cuisines, including expert chefs from Chinese, Indian and Arabic cuisines, to create a wide range of flavors and presentations. A comprehensive approach was demonstrated by both vegan and non-vegan chefs and team members at the tasting panels.

Economy Class vegan menus are also renewed every month, offering a wide variety for frequent travelers. While vegan meals in Economy Class can be ordered pre-flight, they are highly sought after by passengers around the world. Current favorites of travelers include marinated tofu, blanched peas, radish, asparagus, pomegranate seeds, zucchini strips and mussels with sriracha sauce, spinach and avocado museline, or multi-colored quinoa with caramelized juicy quince and celery puree, baked cauliflower, sauced carrots, kale Sauté, wild celery pesto, and sun-dried tomatoes with its autumn flavor, chestnuts with butter, blanched baby broccoli and barley risotto with mushrooms served with roasted pumpkin seeds.

Passengers will not be able to get enough of the vegan desserts that offer seductive flavors such as dark chocolate cream cake prepared with fresh strawberries, delicious lemon tart with thin coconut cream, and rich chocolate tofu cheesecake complete with sweet strawberry compote.

High Quality and Healthy Ingredients

The benefits of plant-powered options are increasingly appealing to non-vegan travelers who occasionally prefer light options to complement their lifestyle. Alternative products used on Emirates flights include artisan vegan cheese, gluten-free pancakes and omelets instead of white flour, and chickpea flour that rises softly and naturally. Coconut or plant-based cream is used instead of full-fat cow's milk, coconut oil or margarine is used instead of animal butter, while coconut and flaxseed oil are used as a healthy alternative to vegetable oils, which add extra flavor to meals and raise the smoke point. Meals also contain a number of nutritious foods, such as black and white quinoa seeds, which are rich in antioxidants and reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease by regulating cholesterol and blood sugar. The new vegan menu of First and Business Class includes unique meatballs made with plant-based products from the world-famous Beyond meat company. In vegan desserts, organic dark chocolate with 60% raw cacao sourced from the Dominican Republic is used. He says that vegan meals are accompanied by Vitality fruit juices, a special fruit juice blend series prepared by Barakat, one of the most popular brands of the UAE. All gluten-free and vegan juices contain essential vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants without added sugar, additives or preservatives.

Taste Profile and Presentation

Emirates' team of award-winning chefs have come together to create an inventive new menu with vegetables as the focus, and meat that doesn't miss the mark, where textures and infusions create the essential umami effect. The jack fruit, which grows on a fibrous fruit tree in southwestern India, has a meaty texture when cooked and is used as a staple in some vegan dishes. Kohlrabi, a cabbage and turnip vegetable native to Northern Europe, absorbs the flavors when marinated or cooked together, leaving a mild flavor and is one of the most effective flavors in vegan cuisine. Other staples that make meals appetizing include irreplaceable tofu, cauliflower steak, nuts and legumes. Emphasizing freshness, vibrant flavor and satiety, Emirates' new vegan dishes are tofu with ancestral cherry tomatoes served with edamame and roasted sesame, thyme-flavored mushroom stew, spring rolls with fresh Hass avocado and mango salad, or kale and cranberry salad served on a bed of grilled sweet potatoes. It offers a selection of colorful and healthy options such as Many new vegan desserts feature thin layers of real gold as decorations, while vegan dishes feature farm-fresh herbs, blackberries and colorful sauces as garnishes alongside vegan dishes, ensuring that delicious and healthy meals are also pleasing to the eye.

Sustainable Procurement Practices

The vegan options on Emirates flights are highly nutritious and rich in greens, fruits and vegetables, including kale freshly grown locally on Bustanica, cherry tomatoes with prosthesis, salad greens and herbs. Bustanica is the world's largest vertical hydroponic farm with a $40 million joint venture investment through Emirates Flight Catering. The Bustanica farm operates with an expert team of cultivation technologists, engineers, horticulturalists and plant scientists, leveraging powerful technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence and advanced methods. The continuous production cycle ensures that agricultural products are perfectly fresh and clean and grown without pesticides, herbicides and chemicals. Emirates First and Business Class passengers are served delicious and full-bodied greens such as lettuce, arugula, mixed salad greens and spinach sourced directly from Bustanica. It is planned to grow even more fruits and vegetables in the future.