JEDDAH, 31 October — Saudi Arabian Catering, which offers 14 million meals daily through 42 airlines in Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam, is fully geared to meet special Ramadan needs.
"We’re coming up with special menus to meet the iftar and sahur needs of passengers of Saudi Arabian Airlines (SAA) and other international carriers during the fasting month that is only a week away," Abdulrahman Al-Hilali, general manager for catering, said during Air-India’s presentation of on-board menu at Saudia Catering building here on Tuesday.
"We’ll make available our items to passengers an hour before and an hour after the fast-breaking time during the month, whether they are on board an aircraft or on the ground," Al-Hilali told a press conference later.
Indian Consul General Syed Akbaruddin was the chief guest at the event. Representatives of AI’s general sales agent Kanoo Travel and ground handling agent Attar Travel were present.
Al-Hilali said the company employs 2,200 people, 20 percent of them Saudi. Its diversified labor force includes 40 different nationalities.
The company, which has to meet special food tastes and requests from various airlines, produces 12,600 different recipes every year, according to Al-Hilali. It organized an elaborate tour of its facilities for the invitees. Conducting the tour were company’s top executives including Hani A. Gazzaz, Hussain Mohamed Al-Shareef and Sugandh S. Kulkarni.
AI’s Western Province Manager S.M. Mazharullah said the purpose of the presentation was to demonstrate how much importance the airline attaches to passenger needs. "We’ve always considered feedback from passengers as of utmost importance for our improvement," he said.
