Catering includes the unloading of unused food and drink from the aircraft, and the loading of fresh food and drink for passengers and crew. Airline meals are typically delivered inAirline service trolleys. Empty or trash-filled trolley from the previous flight are replaced with fresh ones. Meals are prepared mostly on the ground in order to minimize the amount of preparation (apart from chilling or reheating) required in the air.
While some airlines provide their own catering, others have either owned catering companies in the past and divested themselves of the companies, or haveoutsourced their catering to third-party companies. Airline catering sources include the following companies: