ANA, Japan’s leading airline, announced a newly expanded halal menu for its in-flight meals to address the wide range of dietary needs by a growing number of international ANA passengers.
“At ANA, we pride ourselves on our attention to detail and for conveying the spirit of Japanese hospitality,” said Tetsuo Fukuda, ANA Executive Vice President of CS & Products Services, Corporate Planning. “As a 5-star rated airline, we will continue to strive to meet the discerning requests of our international guests and accommodate their wide range of dietary profiles.”
Japan is host to a growing number of international visitors, with notable increases from majority Muslim countries such as Indonesia and Malaysia in 2015, with visitor arrivals up 33.4% and 16.1% respectively, between January and May 2015.
Japan has also seen a 35.1% increase in the number of visitors from Singapore during the same time period[1]. The announcement coincides with ANA’s launch of daily flights to Kuala Lumpur from Tokyo beginning September 1, 2015, as part of efforts to expand its international flight network and welcome more visitors to Japan.
Since January 2014, ANA has partnered with Brahim’s Holdings Berhad (hereafter ‘Brahim’s’), a Malaysia-based company and the world’s largest purveyor of halal cuisine, to provide halal-certified meals aboard ANA flights. Through the partnership, ANA Catering Service, which is responsible for all in-flight meals and beverages for the ANA Group, has obtained certification to produce halal cuisine at its facility in Kawasaki, Japan. ANA began serving halal-certified ‘arare’ rice crackers on all international flights earlier this month.
Beginning on July 1, 2015, ANA will begin offering halal-certified Japanese style chicken curry created in collaboration with Brahim’s, as a light meal option. The new menu item will be available on First Class flights between Tokyo and Europe and Singapore, on First Class Tokyo departures to North America, in Business Class travel between Tokyo and Jakarta, as well as the upcoming Tokyo-Kuala Lumpur route, which launches September 1, 2015.
Also on September 1, ANA Business Class and Economy Class passengers will have the choice of organic “Sunpu Aoido Shizuoka Green Tea”, the first green tea in Japan to receive halal certification. On the same day, ANA will also begin serving a high-quality, non-alcoholic sparkling rosé wine in all First Class cabins, which will also be available for a limited time in the Business Class cabin of the upcoming Tokyo-Kuala Lumpur flight, to commemorate the launch of the service. All in-flight meals on Kuala Lumpur departures to Tokyo supplied from Brahim’s will be halal-certified.
[1] Source: Japan National Tourism Organization, published June 18, 2015
