How One Airline Is Turning Leftover Plane Food Into Clean Energy

High-flying food waste: a global problem

Cathay Pacific designed an innovative system to divert food waste from in-flight food service to create energy. Photo: Cathay Pacific

Globally, food waste accounts for eight to 10 percent of carbon emissions, according to the United Nations. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) reports that about 34 percent of cabin waste comes from untouched food and beverages. One estimate places the value of unused food and drink on flights at roughly $4 billion annually. It’s a system ripe for innovation – and it’s about time a big airline steps up to the plate.

Cathay Dining’s new system integrates dedicated conveyors and compactors to segregate inbound food waste from general refuse arriving on flights. That waste is then transferred to the nearby Organic Resources Recovery Centre (O·PARK) on Lantau Island, where anaerobic digestion converts the organic material into renewable energy.
According to Cathay Dining’s announcement, the food-waste recycling capacity has increased by 200 percent following the new installation. The O·PARK facility itself can process up to 500 tonnes of food waste every day, generating enough surplus electricity to power around 8,000 households in Hong Kong annually.

Beyond waste separation, the overhaul brings utility-savings and operational enhancements. Cathay Dining reports that by separating stripping (equipment sorting) from washing, and by ensuring washers operate only when full, the system reduces electricity use by up to 70 percent and water use by nearly 60 percent compared to the previous setup.Multi-purpose washers also allow different equipment types to be cleaned simultaneously, improving machine utilisation by more than 20 percent.

Lee, of course, noted that the company is proud to lead in sustainable practices and operational excellence, saying that the development “future-proofs operations and enables us to meet the evolving needs of our customers with a focus on sustainability.”

Will other airlines follow?

Historically, in-flight meals haven’t been known for their eco-friendliness. Photo: Cathay Pacific

Cathay Pacific is alone in integrating a dedicated system to address food waste. But, other airlines have at least acknowledged the problem and taken minor steps to address it, even if those steps are geared more toward their bottom lines than anything else. Pre-ordering options, increasingly common on long-haul flights and for business- and first-class travelers, give kitchens an idea of what to expect, while most airlines have computer-vision systems in catering facilities to track post-flight waste to inform menu planning. Others are improving efficiency in the kitchens themselves, largely by diverting scraps for compost or anaerobic digestion and reducing over-production through better logistics management.

Some airlines are also setting measurable goals. All Nippon Airways aims to cut its food-disposal rate from 4.3 percent in 2024 to 2.3 percent by 2051 (plenty of runway there), while several European and Middle Eastern carriers have begun collaborating with airports and waste-to-energy plants to divert organic waste from landfill. Despite progress, regulatory and biosecurity rules still require international flight waste to be destroyed, restricting redistribution or donation efforts. Forecasting remains complicated by passenger variability and operational disruptions, and packaging standards further limit reuse potential. Yet reducing food waste delivers clear benefits — lowering costs, cutting emissions, and strengthening airlines’ sustainability credentials — signaling that catering innovation is now as central to environmental progress as fuel efficiency or carbon offsetting.

For the broader aviation industry, Cathay Pacific’s initiative signals that catering operations can actually be changed for the better, and that it’s well-received when an airline makes the investment to do so. As Cathay Dining serves more than 50 airlines and produces tens of thousands of meals daily, its model for inbound food-waste recycling and resource optimisation may serve as a template for other major carriers and caterers.