Following the directive given by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, mandate foreign carriers to patronise local caterers for on-board meals starting from January 1, 2025, the minister has justified his decision.
Keyamo, in a statement on X, formerly Twitter, said foreign airlines’ practice of serving warmed meals on outbound flights to Nigerians was no longer acceptable.
He said caterers from other climes should not benefit from what should be of benefit to Nigeria’s economy.
The minister stated: “This is to clarify that directing foreign airlines on outbound flights to patronise our local caterers is not the same thing as directing them to serve local dishes. Our local caterers can also prepare continental dishes or anyone for that matter According to their specifications.
The age-long practice of bringing their meals frozen from their different countries and then warming and serving them on their outbound flights to mostly our citizens is no longer acceptable.
“We also have quality control agencies to supervise the hygienic nature of those meals, if that is their concern. On the flip side, if they want us to trust the quality of the food they bring into our country to serve our own citizens, then they also should trust our process of vetting those meals made by our local caterers. The bottom line is that we must support our local businesses with our huge population and traffic, but other caterers from other climes should not benefit from what should essentially be to the benefit of our local economy.”